I Do, but I Forgot I Did
by uponthemirrorglass
Summary: All she wanted was to come to Vegas for her 21st birthday and now here was what she got. The craziest birthday present ever. A marriage. DASEY.
1. Annulment

**AN: So here's another story. I randomly wrote this chapter and I'm still not quite sure how I'm going to play out everything. lol. **

**I thought I'd do a humor story after that one-shot drained me. :(:**

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned.**

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There they sat anxiously awaiting the arrival of Judge Otis Dumas, or so it read on the name plate sitting on the desk in front of them. She could hear him giggling to the right of her, drawing her slowly to turn her head to a shoulder shaking; in hysterics laughing, so-called husband of hers. "What the hell are you laughing at?" She asked with 'tude but with a slight laugh of her own. Deep down she knew she was laughing at the same thing he was, she just wasn't ready to give into his childish ways.

He stared at her in disbelief, "Oh come on, Otis Dumas? What the hell kind of a name is that? I don't know what I'm more worried about…pronouncing his last name wrong or laughing my ass off, when he introduces himself, to the point we get kicked out of here." She couldn't hold it in anymore and she shared in his laugh, "I mean Dumas? He might as well change his first name to 'Ima' and add the other S in ther--" They heard a deep clearing of the throat from behind them. The two of them stared at one another with wide eyes as they blushed with embarrassment.

The man made his way to his desk. Tall man, who had his long black judge's robe on; gray hair, thick glasses. He sat down and cleared his throat once more as if he had his lunch stuck in there. Judge Dumas picked up the forms on his desk and took a gander at it, taking his index finger to where he brought it to the middle of his glasses and gently brought it down closer to the edge of his nose, reading intently the forms in front. "Mr. and Mrs. Venturi."

"_Mr. and Mrs. Venturi,_" She repeated in her head. She cringed at the four words together. "Sorry Judge Du--" she stopped herself from saying his last name due to the fact _she_ couldn't even pronounce it without mistakenly calling him Dumbass. "…just call us by our first names please."

The Judge let out an annoyed sigh. She heard it…even he heard it. "Okay, _Derek_ and _Casey_, you're here for an annulment it seems."

- - - -

_Casey awoke from a side-spliting headache that pounded to no end. She stared blankly at the sheet wrapped around her. Casey started to panic but she had to know so she slowly lifted up the sheet and just like she figured…she was naked. "Oh shit." She ran a hand through the front of her hair and looked around. Casey had no idea who she shared this bed with and how she got into this room; this room she surely didn't check into last night, but she knew why this happened…it was because of that damned alcohol. Casey looked to the right side of her, where her bedmate slept, and saw that necklace. That damned necklace. That damned necklace with that damned silver circle hanging down from the lining and immediately she knew who the identity of her mystery guy was, "Der-EK!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. That same scream that became part of her daily vocabulary. That same scream that was like breathing air because it was so damned repetitive. This time it wasn't that normal complaining or that annoyance because of a prank he pulled, it was because of what she saw in front of her. _

_--_

_Derek stood in the bathroom, staring at himself in the mirror, smacking his face to make sure he was awake. He slowly brought his hands to the left and right knobs of the faucet. He let the cool water run in his hands as he brought it to his face, trying to wash off the indiscretions he knew was the night before. The water ran down and he felt cool metal on the left side of his cheek. Derek furrowed his eyebrows and he slowly focused his eyes on his left hand while it inched away from his face, turning it around to see the back of it. Starting from his thumb all the way to his pinky then immediately back to his ring finger. "Oh shit." He could hear her yelling his name in that annoying screech that he became so fond of because it told him his job here was done. This time it wasn't one to be fond of, it was one that he was expecting to hear because of what he saw in front of him. _

_--_

"_Derek! Der-REK! DEREK!" She screamed all at once as she gathered her clothes from the floor, quickly putting them on. "Shit. Shit. Shit." She muttered to herself and there he finally came out. Clad in his boxers and all Casey could think was something had to have happened if he was wearing that and she woke up with nothing on. "Shit."_

"_Casey…" He slowly paced over to her. Derek could see the panic written on her face as she stared at him with those wide blue eyes. He could tell she knew the same thing he did and she was going to give him hell for it. He had no clue how the hell they got into the predicament they were in—oh wait he did. "Damn you, alcohol!" He muttered aloud to himself as he stood there in front of her._

_Casey glared at him, "What was that, Derek?" she slowly walked toward him and immediately he had a reflex to pace backwards from the angry Casey he knew _not_ to mess with. _

"_No-nothing, Casey. Heh-heh…" letting out a laugh to try and wipe the glare off her face. Honestly he had no idea why she was so angry toward him because he was just as surprised as she was. _

"_Do you know what the hell happened yesterday?" She muttered, still pacing toward him. _

_Derek shook his head and was stopped in his tracks as his back smacked against the hotel wall, "Ow…uh…I just found out this morning, Case. Don't kill me," he told her as he brought his hands out in front of him for protection._

_Casey knew she was just taking out her anger on Derek. It was something she always did. It was what she lived to do. Displacement was the name for that. Psychology was her major and right now it was kicking in. Casey immediately stopped her glaring and her pacing all together and groaned, raising her arms up in frustration, "We slept together last night?!"_

_Derek laughed and saw the glare come back. Immediately he knew she had no idea what _he_ knew. What he knew would make her even more crazy. Even more angry. "Umm…Casey, that's the least of our problems…" He saw her eyebrows furrow together and he was ready to hear it, "Casey…" and at that moment Derek was terrified. Never in his life had he been this terrified…and shockingly it was being terrified of Casey. Casey Mc—wait…Casey Venturi, the girl he had a blast torturing over the years and never gave a damn if she was pissed at him or not. Now was the first time he was terrified. There he saw her face, glare and all, waiting for a response from him and he realized his mouth would open for one second only to be closed the next. _

_Casey crossed her arms and tapped her foot, "Derek, what is it? It can't be any less worse than us sl--" she cringed, "doing you know what. So come out with it!" she demanded. While she saw him a bit shaken up, she kept trying to think back about what happened last night. She would immediately be shaken out of her thoughts when he slowly brought out his left hand in front of her face._

"_Uhh…Casey…"_

_Casey's eyes grew even more wide, if that's even possible, "Derek…" she shook her head slowly and her eyes darted to her own left hand glancing from thumb to pinky then back to her ring finger. "Oh shit." _

"_Same thing I said." He saw her slowly turn her head to look at him and the only thing that he could register at that moment was how it reminded him of The Exorcist. Derek even saw flashes of the possessed girl's head meshing with Casey's. He tried to pace backwards and away from her but his back was already against the wall. There was no escape. The glare was back and she could see her face fill with anger. Those blue eyes weren't so blue anymore, he saw red. He laughed nervously, "Uh…hey hey there wife." Immediately Derek knew that was the worst thing he could've said at the moment. _

_Casey _was_ seeing red. Red like what would become of Derek's body when she was done with it. "Derek," she muttered, "we're _married?_" she added much emphasis onto the word married, continuing to glare all she could. She figured out that all this glaring was giving her even more of a headache but it wouldn't stop her._

_Derek looked down at both their left hands and looked back at her, "Uh…it sure seems that way."Derek jokingly gave her punch on the shoulder to help her lighten up, "Hey there, Mrs. Venturi!" and immediately she smacked his hand away with all her strength. Derek frowned, "Ow…" he rubbed his hand and there she stood: The Exorcist 2.0. _

- - - -

"Yes." Both Derek and Casey said in unison. At that moment they both looked at one another and glared.

"Okay, so the form here says that you two are requesting an annulment on grounds that Mr. Venturi is impotent." He read aloud and looked up at them as he put the forms down. Casey tensed for a moment and looked at Derek, who was already staring daggers at her. She could see the red rush through to his cheeks and she could even see it in his eyes. Casey offered him a smile and the anger was still there. Casey turned back to look at the judge's face, who now had an eyebrow raised, "Which means you two were unable to consummate the marriage?"

Casey sat there blushing from the pressure of the questions, from the pressure of Derek's glares. "Yes, that is true." Just then Casey, the judge, and even the stenographer could hear Derek snort extremely loud. Casey turned and subtly stomped on his foot. "Derek!" she muttered.

He glared at her once more and stomped on her foot right back, "Casey!" he mocked her.

The Judge cleared his throat once more and the married couple turned to focus their eyes back on him, "What is going on here?" he sighed once more, "Is there something I should know?" raising an obvious eyebrow as if he knew something was up.

Casey scooted her chair closer to the desk and put her hand on the Judge's to assure him. He brought his face down and blankly stared at her hand on his. Casey immediately knew he wasn't happy with her form of assurance so she pulled back, "Nothing is going on here, your honor. My husband is just being silly that's all," she tried her hardest to convince him with her words, even brightly smiling at him. The judge looked at Derek, who was extremely pissed off at the moment. Casey looked at him and threw him a stare to go along with her, "Right, Derek?"

Derek had enough. He was embarrassment. He had an ego the size of all of North America and right now he wasn't going to let it get any smaller. "Consummate?" He laughed out loud as he stared between the judge and Casey, who turned a nice pretty shade of scarlet red, "I consummated this marriage the night of. I could consummate it a second time right here, right now! Impotent my ass!" he muttered, "If I were so impotent, Casey, then you wouldn't have enjoyed it!"

Casey face stayed red. There went their plan. Their plan was ruined, "You stupid son of a bitch!" She smacked his shoulder as hard as she could.

"Settle down you two!" The judge demanded as his voice got louder. Derek and Casey turned their attention to the judge once more, where both were breathing heavy from the anger that built up inside of them. "Is there anything on this form that is true?"

Casey threw one more evil glare toward Derek and focused her attention back on the judge, "No. Truth is we were drunk in Vegas and we got married."

"As well as consummating the marriage and lying about it too," he continued in an annoyed manner and Casey knew things weren't going to work out now. She felt stupid for doing what she did. For lying on the dumb annulment forms, but she wanted to get back at Derek and his annoying teasing throughout the time they found out about this.

- - - -

"_We're married…" she repeated to herself and Derek just wanted to shut her up already, "We're f-ing married." Casey over to the hotel bed and sat on the edge, "We're seriously married." _

"_Casey!!" He groaned aloud and she glared at him once more, "We're married! I know! I'm the other person in this marriage so you don't have to remind me!"He took a seat next to her, "We had a pretty crazy night if you can recall--"_

"_That's just it, Derek!" she looked over at him, "I can't recall any of it!!"_

"_Oh." Derek said blankly, "Well me either. I don't remember it either. Especially us getting married." He let out a laugh and Casey still didn't, instead she buried her head in her hands and Derek could hear her start to sob. He sighed, "Shit…Umm…uh…Casey. Don't cry." He wanted to reach up and rub her back or something but he pulled them back and left his hands where they were. "We could just get a divorce," he offered._

_Casey let out a tiny laugh. A pathetic laugh. Here she sat on a hotel's bed, next to her husband. Derek Venturi. Her step-brother. The bane of her existence. The annoying itch that never went away. All she wanted was to come to Vegas for her 21__st__ birthday and now here was what she got. The craziest birthday present ever. A marriage. "I just turned 21…" she threw out another pathetic laugh, "and I'm already going to be divorced. We're," she motioned a hand between the two of them, "going to be divorced."_

"_Oh come on, wife. It just must be hereditary." He laughed once more to rid her of her panic and yet again he made no progress. Derek let out another sigh, "Casey," and nudged her, "We have to get a divorce, Case. It's our only option to undo this drunken mistake."_

_Casey sat up straighter, "There is another option, Derek!" she looked at him excitedly, "Annulment!"_

_Derek clapped his hands in sarcastic excitement then blankly stared at her, "What the hell is that?"_

_She immediately rolled her eyes at him, "It voids our marriage and erases it forever without contesting to divorce."He nodded slowly as he tried to understand, "Yeah, annulment." Casey sighed and stared ahead, "What the hell happened yesterday?"_

"_I don't know Casey. I just remember hearing you scream my name, really loud I should add, over and over and over and over and ove--" He was shut up when the back of Casey's left hand ran a smack across his left cheek._

- - - -

"Consummating a marriage nullifies your grounds for an annulment." He told them seriously.

Derek and Casey both groaned aloud. Casey was extremely pissed off at the moment. All she could think about was if that stupid husband of hers just pretended to be impotent for one minute then they wouldn't be married any more. But no, he just had to keep his ego as big as it already was and now they were in a pickle.

Derek was extremely pissed off at the moment too. All _he_ could think about was how stupid Casey was to lie on the dumb forms. How she had to lie about something she even knew wasn't true. And now, because she was _so_ stupid, they were still married.

"So what now? Divorce?" Casey asked with such concern that both she and Derek sat up straight in their chairs, where they were awaiting an answer that'll hopefully dissolve this mistake of a marriage.

Judge Dumas sat up straight along with them. He was peeved to say the least. Here sat in front of him two young adults, who made a stupid mistake and he thought now was the perfect time to teach them a lesson. He took off those thick glasses as he intertwined his fingers while he continued to stare at the two concern-filled faces in front of him, "I would tell you that you two have to file for divorce but, unfortunately, I don't even think I can do that."

Derek laughed nervously, "Uh…hold on there, Judge Otis. Wh-what do you mean we can't file for divorce?"

"Have either of you two had sexual relations outside the marriage?"

Derek and Casey looked at one another and shook their heads toward the judge, "No." They both told him.

"Are either of you physically or mentally abused by the other?" Derek and Casey shook their heads once more. He sighed, "And it's obvious that you two haven't been married for long. Law states that you two must be separated for a year in order to file for divorce to show proper marriage breakdown."

Casey quickly buried her head in her hands for what seemed like the 100th time in the last few days since they got back. Derek honestly felt bad for Casey and he knew that neither of them wanted to be in this marriage. He turned his attention to the judge, "Can't one of us just sleep with another person and then we can get out of this marriage. I mean we aren't in love and we certainly didn't marry on purpose."

"I'm sorry Mr. Venturi but that what you said right there would be known as Connivance," Derek was about to open his mouth but the judge decided to help him out, "It's when one of you encourages the other one to commit a marital offence so you can get a divorce." Derek still had confusion on his face and Casey decided to look up and pay attention too, "For example, Casey asks you to sleep with someone else so that you two could get a divorce."

Derek's mouth formed a big 'O', "Is that right…"

"Yes. So it seems that you two are going to have to stick it out for a year, then you could get the divorce you so badly need."

Derek blankly turned his head to look at Casey, "Are you happy now? Are you seriously proud of yourself? Look at what you did with your stupid, stupid forms, Case!"

Casey glared right back at him, "Am _I_ proud of myself?! You should be the one to blame! You and your stupid ego! If you just agreed with the damn story, we'd be single again but _no_ you just had to prove to two _other_ people that you are still a happy camper down there!" She stared at the judge, "Does this not show some sort of mental abuse because this is what you're keeping married to! He drives me crazy!"

"Enough!" Judge Otis smacked his hammer and the two of them stopped their arguing and looked at him, "One year. You two can come back here in one year unless those other requirements factor in and I mean _not_ on purpose. Now get out of my chambers before I choose to keep you two in jail for a night to shut you up." With that Derek and Casey made their way toward the exit, "And it's pronounced Doo-moss, by the way." Casey and Derek gave each other a stare and quickly got out of there.

--

"Great." She muttered as they left the courthouse and huffed over to Derek's car. "I have to stay married to you for a year?!" Derek stopped in his tracks and tried to calm himself down from blowing up at her. Casey annoyingly tried to pull open the door, which was still locked. She turned around and saw Derek standing there, "What the hell are you doing? Let's go!"

Derek finally made his way over to the car. Instead of going straight to the driver's seat, he went over to Casey's side and opened it for her. She stared with massive confusion, "Casey, just get in." She did and he gently closed the door behind her. Derek made his way to the passenger seat, "Separated for a year then we can get a divorce, Casey. I'm not trying to suffer for a year so let's just deal with this as best as we can."

Casey agreed. She knew they were stuck in this predicament now but for some reason she wondered why Derek was the one that was calm. "Weird."

"What?"

"Nothing." She answered almost immediately.

Here was the start of the one-year marital life separation.

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**lol so yeah...I'm trying to figure out what Imma do next. Reviews will motivate me to sit here and write more :)**


	2. A Session with Our Friends

**AN: You guys are simply AMAZING. So the majority of my memorial day was trying to fight the writer's block and get something done... **

**Disclaimer: I own not a dang thing. **

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One would ask why Derek Venturi was still in Casey McDonald's life. Could it be the fact that they attended the same college? University of Toronto was where they both went. She was studying Psychology and he came to play hockey in hopes where he'd get into the big leagues. They hardly ever saw one another at school, unless plans were made, so it couldn't be that. Or could it be the fact that Casey's ex-roommate and Derek's best friend were in a relationship? Sam met Casey's roommate Gina and sparks flew which forced Derek to go over to Casey's all the time. Gina lived there no longer, since she moved in with Sam and Derek, so there was no real reason for Derek to swing by as much as he does. So maybe that wasn't it. Or maybe it's that lingering fact that they were still step-siblings with family they see pretty often.

They didn't know. No one knew. Not even the psychology major herself could figure it out.

No matter how hard they tried to get out of one another's lives, it never worked. Now here they were. Married and binding to one another as husband and wife.

"Who's home?" Derek asked as they went into Casey's apartment.

"No one. Lindsay's at some play rehearsal or something," she told him as she put her keys down on the coffee table and sorted through her mail. "Nothing important," she muttered to herself as she slapped the mail back down on the table. She looked around for Derek and there he was, raiding her fridge. Casey stood up with massive annoyance, "What you doing?!" she huffed over to the kitchen, "Don't you have a place of you own? A fridge of your own to raid?"

Derek rolled his eyes and grabbed a soda and made his way over to her couch, "Yes and yes." He sat down and propped up his feet on her table. Casey brought her arms and with massive force, threw his feet off her table, "Ow, wife! Moody, much?" He turned the TV on and started to intently watch as if it were a daily habit of his to do this in her apartment. Maybe it was and Casey just didn't realize it till now. She made her way in front of him to block his vision of the TV, "Are you looking for attention, Casey, because I really wanted to see this show."He started to laugh as he pointed to the TV, with the remote in his hand, "It's so funny, Case, there's a bear that juggles a bat over and over--"

"DEREK!" she groaned as loud and she could and Derek stopped talking and looked at her. "This damned TV show isn't important right now. We need to talk about us."

Derek leaned in front of him and put his soda, which Casey made sure to put under a coaster, and put the remote down. He leaned back and looked at her, "What about us? We're married and we have to go through a year of separation before we can get di--"

"I know that!" she snapped at him.

Derek wrinkled his nose at her, "Then what the hell do you want to talk about then? You make no sense. I swear that you're going to be a shitty psychiatrist one day and--"

Casey put her hand over Derek's mouth to shut him up, "For the hundredth time, it's psychologist," she told him as took a seat on the coffee table. "And Derek," she took a deep breath and tried her hardest to be calm toward him, "You are seriously mentally abusing me right now, so please shut up." He did and she took her hand back and had a reflex to wipe it on her jeans. She looked back up at his confused face, while subconsciously she reached into her bag and took out her hand sanitizer, "We need to figure out how the hell this even happened." Casey told him as she sanitized Derek's mouth germs off her hand.

"How? We tried for the past few days and no one el--" he saw Casey's face blush and he groaned, "Who else knows about this Casey?"

"Emily."

"You told Emily?!" he freaked out. "I thought you said we were going to keep this a secret?!"

"I didn't tell her!" she screamed right back at him, "She knew about it before we did apparently. She kept making subtle jokes about marriage and the other day I finally asked her what her game was and she said she knew we were married! But I didn't get to ask her for the whole story because we had to get to our classes and she was busy at work."

"Well what the hell are you waiting for?! Call her and tell her to come over here!"

"I am about to! Stop yelling at me!" she yelled at him, doing exactly what she told him not to do to her, as she rummaged through her bag for her cell phone. Casey pulled it out and dialed the number; she held it up to her ear and could see a grin on Derek's face, "What?"

"Nothing." He reached up and pinched Casey's cheek like a child, "It's just my wife is so adorable when she's flushed with worry."

Casey smacked his hand away as she glared at him, "I swear to—Hey Em!" Derek continued to laugh and she continued to glare, "Me and Derek need to talk to you like right now. Are you free?" Derek saw Casey blush and he knew Emily had to have said something worth knowing, "Shut up. Ugh, yes Em. We'll tell you about it when you get here. An hour? Fine. That's fine. Just get here okay? Alright, bye." She hung up and looked at Derek, "Look's like you're stuck here for another hour."

Derek smirked and patted the space next to him on the couch, "Come on. Spend some quality time with your husband."

She stood up, "How about _no_." Casey muttered sarcastically as she made her way over to the kitchen to raid her own fridge, searching for something to eat.

He frowned and turned his body to watch her where she stood behind the couch, "Well could we eat something then, Casey? I'm starving and you seriously have nothing to eat in your fridge. I'm worried about you. I can't let my wife starve to death. Then we can't get our divorce." Derek watched her as she slowly paced toward him and once more he became terrified, "Hey, Case, I'm jus--"

Casey inched closer to him and the glare was back in an instant, "Stop. Calling. Me. Your. _Wife_."

"I was just kid--" He was shut up once more as she smacked the annoyance off of him.

--

"Shit Casey," he rubbed his jaw while he looked into his rearview mirror, "You keep saying I mentally abuse you? You're the one that is physically abusing me!" He turned his head to the right and saw a bright smiling Casey. "I want a divorce!" They both busted out into laughter. At that moment both Casey and Derek realized that they were doing a pretty good job at making the best out of this situation.

"Me too. Now quit your bitchin' and let's go eat something. I can't starve remember?" He rolled his eyes and they went to eat at the diner down the street.

--

After a blast at the diner, they headed back to Casey's to wait for Emily. There they sat on the couch where Derek forced her to watch the bat-juggling Bear that he recorded on her TiVo. Sitting there laughing helped her realize that today was the first time she was actually having fun during this predicament they were in.

Shortly thereafter, the both of them had slipped into a food coma.

--

Casey abruptly awoke to the sound of knocking on the door. She rubbed her eyes and looked around her and her eyes grew wide. There was an arm around her and her comfy pillow was her husband's chest. Casey immediately smacked Derek's stomach, "Wake up!"

Derek groaned, "Leave me alone…" he let out groggily as he pulled her onto him once more; using his arm, which was still wrapped around her, "Come on, Case. Let's go back to sleep." Casey told herself not to panic as the door kept being knocked on. She told herself to calm down but right now she couldn't. Derek was trying to be a husband to her and she wasn't going to have it. They were "separated" after all. So once more she smacked him and this time he awoke, "What the hell, Case! Ow!!"

"I was trying to wake you up!"

He glared at her, "Well _why_ didn't you just say 'wake up?!'"

"I did!!" she snapped at him. "But you keep trying to cuddle with me!!" Casey immediately took his arm off from around her, "Now Emily's here so stop." She stood up and straightened herself up while she looked down at a grinning Derek, "Ugh, what now?" He was about to speak but she interrupted him for her own sanity, "I swear to the greater being that if you have some stupid sarcastic remark about how flushed your wife looks I will kill you." He let out a silent laugh and gestured himself to zip his lips, "Good. Emily will help us solve this mess." He nodded.

Casey made her way over to her front door and opened it to see an annoyed Emily, "Well it took you long enough!"

Casey smiled innocently, "Sorry. I was having a cat-nap. You know how it is…" Emily made her way in and saw Derek sitting on the couch, still slouching as if he were napping too. Casey came back over to the couch and sat down while Emily had a slight smile curving on her lips; she looked between the two of them, "Wh-what Emily?"

"You two napped together didn't you? Husband and Wife napped together!" Emily let out excitedly, "See I knew you two wo--"

"Hold it right there, Emily." Emily stopped, "We just fell asleep on the couch. That's all." Derek assured her, "No funny business. We ate too much and we were tired that's all. More importantly you need to tell us what you know."

Emily's face fell. Her teasing wasn't going to hold up with them, "First of all let's go over what _you two_ remember."

Derek and Casey looked at one another then back at Emily, "From the beginning?" Emily nodded.

- - - -

_There Casey parked in front of Derek's building. Anger building up inside of her at the news Emily just told her; she clenched the steering wheel of her car, her knuckles turning white and never had she been this angry; so far, with Derek. Casey got out of her car and made her way to his door and knocked angrily. "Damn you, Venturi." She cursed under her breath. _

_Gina answered the door, "Hey Case. Did we have plans today?"_

_Casey shook her head and made her way into the apartment, "Is Derek here?"_

"_Right here, Case." He called from behind her, where he sat on his recliner watching TV. "What's up?"_

_Casey marched over to him, "What's up? What's _up_, Derek?!" she snorted, "Maybe the fact that you're coming to Las Vegas for my _girls_ weekend?!"_

_Derek immediately raised his arms in defense while he tried to defend his actions, "Hey, Sam was going--"_

_Casey then turned her head to look at Gina, who smiled innocently at her, "Sam's going?" Casey was angry now. It was supposed to be a small little weekend for her girlfriends and now it was being invaded by two guys. "What happened to all girls?!"_

"_Casey, I'm sorry but Sam doesn't trust me in Vegas after I kept joking about how we're going to see strippers and stuff. I know we're not, but he got all jealous and whatever. Then the next thing I knew, he already had a flight booked." Casey groaned out a frustration scream, "Casey, I'm sorry." _

_Casey shook her head and calmed down, "It's fine, Gina."_

"_Hey!" Derek let out with a scoff, "How come it's fine if Sam goes but you're about to unleash fury on me?!" she went over to him once more and he could see the crazy in her eyes yet again, "I mean, I'm _just_ asking Case."_

"_Because _you_, Derek, don't have any reason to come, and now you're coming. So what the hell?" Casey let out as calm as she could instead of strangling him at that exact moment._

"_Dad and Nora made me go." It was the only thing he could think of on the spot, "They wanted me to watch over you." He admitted. It was the truth after all but they didn't force him to go, they merely just suggested it. It was all Derek who decided he wanted to go to Vegas and have some fun. A party is never happenin' without him involved and Casey's 21__st__ birthday getaway in Vegas was no exception. "Yeah, that's what it is," he lied, "Dad and Nora forced me to come along. Gotta watch over my favorite step-sister and make sure no scary American men try to pull anything. Plus Sammy boy needs another guy around that way you girls can go on your merry way. We won't bother you guys, we promise." _

_Derek put up a very convincing argument and Casey could do nothing but just accept it. Derek was going to come and she only hoped things would go as planned. "Fine, Derek." She sighed and Derek smiled brightly, "You can com--"_

_Derek snorted, "Oh, Case. I was going to come regardless if you said 'yes or no' because I already have my ticket too and guess where I'm sitting?" He stood up in front of her and put an arm around her as he led her to his front door._

_Casey took a deep breath and pinched her temples in hopes that the migraine, named Derek, wouldn't grow anymore than it already has. She wasn't even sure how Derek pulled the certain things he did but somehow he did it... again, "Next to me." She stated._

"_You got it." He shoved her out his door, "It's going to be a blast, Case! Happy birthday! Now have a great day, Sis." Derek closed the door and Casey walked a slow walk her car, leaving his home as if she lost another battle with her migraine. _

"_Damn you, Venturi." _

- - - -

"Good times." Derek let out as he sat back against the couch. Deep down he thought that was some of his best work. He always knew how to breakdown Casey and he never failed to do so. It was his purpose in life to drive her crazy. Both of the girls stared at him blankly, "What?"

Emily and Casey shook their heads. "Okay where were we?" Casey asked.

"Derek is coming with us to Vegas…"

"Yeah, I am." Derek grinned.

Just then the door was being knocked on and Casey got up to answer it. It was Sam and Gina coming for a visit leaving Casey and Derek a bit nervous. "Uh…hey guys." She fetched Derek a look, "What brings you by?"

"We just wanted to stop by," Sam said as they came in. Casey and Derek both knew they didn't want to talk about what they _were_ talking about. It was supposed to be a secret between the three of them and now they had to wait a little while longer as their friends came for a visit. Casey made her way back to sit next to Derek, while Sam and Gina took the single seat to the left of them.

"So where's my replacement at?" Gina joked.

"First off, she has a name--" Gina waved a useless hand. "She's at a pl--" Casey would be interrupted.

"At a play rehearsal or something," Derek finished for her.

Casey glared at Derek and she looked at the other three faces that grinned at her. Immediately Casey blushed and she felt like she was being ambushed. "Aw…he finishes sentences for you." Gina let out and the three of them all started to laugh while Casey and Derek stared at each other in with massive confusion. "That is adorable," the three idiots grinned some more.

Casey looked at Derek with wide eyes to which he returned. They both looked at their friends, "Wait--"

Sam and Gina nodded, "Yeah, we know you're married." Casey's face turned red with embarrassment while Derek stared daggers at Sam, who raised his hands in defense. This was supposed to be a secret and now? Now two other people knew. Casey threw a stare at Emily, who too raised her arms in defense. "Casey, don't worry. Sam and I found out on our own." Gina and Sam both snorted, "I mean _all_ three of us saw you guys."

Casey furrowed her eyebrows at the happy couple, who were sitting there laughing at her and Derek's situation. "Saw us wh-what?" Emily, Sam, and Gina all stared at one another once more and Casey groaned in frustration of not knowing what the hell is going on. "I swear to God th--"

Emily let out a laugh, "Casey, calm down. Let's just finish figuring this out. We'll get there."

Casey sat back and relaxed while she turned her head to look at a blank Derek. There he sat calm again. It started to freak her out. He chose to be calm at the most random times and most of those times being when she is freaking out. "Der--"

"Casey, let's just finish getting through this. Maybe Sam and Gina can be more help too." Derek said calmly toward her and he didn't even wait for a reply, "Alright so we finished where I told Case I was coming with to Vegas. So the flight…"

- - - -

_There they sat on the flight to Las Vegas. Derek sitting to the right of her as she stared out the window; he kept leaning his head on her shoulder and all she could do was nudge it with force to get it off of her. She was peeved but there was nothing she could do about it. He was there and she was going to be stuck with him till they got off that flight. All Casey could do was thank God that he was asleep for most of it. _

_Casey slowly unbuckled her seatbelt and got up. She really had to use the bathroom but she didn't want to wake up Derek because she knew if she woke him up, he'd be awake for the remainder of the flight and their goes her happiness; her peace and quiet. Once her foot accidently hit his, she groaned aloud and struggled to get out. "Where ya goin', Case?"_

"_The bathroom, now can you give me space?" He moved his legs and gave her room to get out and hurry to the bathroom. She finished up and was startled by a knock on the door. "Hold on. Almost done," she announced as she washed her hands. _

"_Hurry up, Casey! I gotta go!" He whined from behind the door and all Casey could think was how much she wanted to make him suffer. He always did this to her whining to get her to hurry out of places. _

"_I'm still washing my hands, Derek. Go to the one behind you." _

"_No! There was a huge guy who looked like he ate something horrible. I'm not using that bathroom when he's finished with it!" He screamed in a whisper toward her. Derek really did have to go. Usually he'd make up lies to hurry her out of places but now he really had to go and all he could do was regret messing with her so many times before. _

_Casey didn't respond, instead she continued to wash her hands. Even fix up the make-up that wore off from the duration of this flight. Then she realized she forgot to flush because stupid Derek distracted her. She was reaching for the knob until she heard a ferocious knock on the door. She turned her head and looked toward his direction, "Derek, ho--" another loud knock startled her to where her hand didn't go toward the knob, instead it ended up in that filthy blue toilet water. "De-REK!" she screamed! "AAH!" _

_Derek let out a laugh and stopped his knocking as the flight attendant approached him, "Sir, is everything okay here?"_

"_Just Dandy, Ma'am. My sister in there is having a hard time working a tampon." The flight attendant gave Derek a sympathetic nod and made her way to her spot. Derek had to give himself a pat on the back because even he thought that was the funniest thing he'd heard all day. He knocked lightly onto the bathroom door once more, "Case?" Finally she opened up the door and there stood in front of him was Casey with a lightly blue stained hand. Derek had to take that back because _this_ was the funniest thing he'd seen all day, "Had an accident there, Case?"_

_Casey glared at him as her breathing became more and more erratic at the sight of him, "You just couldn't wait till I was done…" she muttered, "You just couldn't stop your damned knocking for one second so I could flush the toilet the _right _way." _

_Derek tried to hold it in because he knew Casey was angry. Extremely angry at that, "Well, if you're done now Casey, I'm just going go head in there now." He squeezed his way into plane's bathroom and made sure he locked it to read 'occupied' while Casey walked back to her seat as people stared at the blue on her hand. She sat down and let out a heavy sigh and just focused her attention out on the window. There was peace outside that window as they flew through the sky. All she could think about was how badly she wished Emily sat next to her but no. She was stuck with Derek, who annoying made his way back to his seat next to her. "So…"_

"_I don't want to talk to you right now." Casey simply said as she stared out the window and Derek sat back in his seat and stared at the TV in front of him. _

- - - -

Sam and Derek were in hysterics as they recalled that part of story. Casey and Gina both glowered at their "men" and they both immediately stopped. "See." Emily simply said as the four looked at her, "Like real couples."

Casey and Derek rolled their eyes at Emily. Derek let out one last laugh, "At least it's off now?" He lifted up her arm to observe.

Casey looked at him blankly, "I don't even know why you're laughing. I got you back." Just then the joking nature Derek was in quickly dissolved as it was his turn to glower at his wife.

- - - -

_The flight attendant came back with the cokes that Casey and Derek ordered. Derek was taking a sip and immediately Casey poured her soda on Derek's crotch, leading Derek to spit his own soda out on the seat in front of him. "What the hell Casey!--"_

"_Excuse me sir? Could you please lower your voice because there are people who are trying to sleep?"_

_Derek turned his head and looked at Casey, who tried to hold in her laughter, "Yeah, Derek, shh you're disturbing the peace." She looked at the flight attendant, "My brother here had a sort of accident. Could we have some napkins please?" _

"_Sure thing." Derek blankly stared at Casey, who finally was having fun on this flight. _

_- - - -  
_

This time Gina, Emily, and Casey were all laughing while Sam tried his hardest to hold it in on Derek's behalf. Casey scoffed at a blushing Derek, "Oh come on, Derek! You started it! It was only fair I get you back!"

"Fine," he sighed, "So now that we have those important details down, what's next? Vegas?" They all nodded.

Emily wiggled her fingertips together Mr. Burns style as she grinned, "The fun part."

Derek and Casey both wrinkled their noses, "Fun for the three of you. Not for us."

* * *

**There really was this video of a bear who just like played with a bat all day. I don't know why it makes me laugh. 0.o  
**

**Don't stop being amazing. Review while I try to fight off stupid writer's block more hah.**


	3. A stain, A smurf, and Vegas

**AN: So I guess I know where I'm going with this now... haha. Man I was a wreck for the past two days. Dang stories get me riled up. **

**Every chapter will have a flashback of some sort...it'll interact with what goes on in the present. yeah. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Except Casey and Derek's Shirts hahah. **

* * *

_The five of them arrived at McClaren airport. Derek and Casey were avoiding one another after the stunts they pulled on the plane as they awaited their luggage at baggage claim. Gina and Emily so badly wanted to ask about the blue on her arm but Casey offered them a glare and they both knew not to mess with her. Sam so badly wanted to know what that dark stain was that appeared on the front of Derek's jeans but he offered that same glare and Sam knew to back off. _

_Half an hour of waiting and still there was no sign of Casey and Derek's bags. Sam, Gina, and Emily had their things and the five of them just sat and waited. Things were just not going Casey or Derek's way; that was evident of everything that was happening so far. "I hate you Derek." Casey muttered randomly as she stared at the conveyer belt._

_Derek laughed sarcastically, "Oh, hey guys," he looked at the other three, "Casey hates me! This is news I've _never _heard before!" He turned his head back to blankly look at her, "Feeling's mutual, Princess." _

_The next thing Casey knew was her grabbing Derek's wrist and pulling him up with her, "Let's go find our damned luggage!"_

- - - -

"Stupid luggage!" Derek and Casey yelled in unison to where they glared at one another for doing so. Sam, Gina, and Emily all shared a look as the story continued.

_- - - -  
_

"_So…your luggage?" Sam asked them as they came out of the airport management office. Derek stood in front of them while Casey took an angry seat. "So I guess it's bad news then?"_

_Derek nodded, "Yeah, stupid ass airlines said our bags were delayed. But we gave our numbers and they'll call us when it arrives so we could pick it up. They said hopefully by tomorrow morning." Derek walked over in front of Casey, where he grabbed her arms and pulled her up, "Casey, lighten up. We're in Vegas. We're gonna go have fun, okay? We're _going_ to have fun."He assured her, "So come on. Let's go!"_

_Casey nodded reluctantly and they went on their way._

_--_

_Sam and Gina had their own room while Emily, Casey, and Derek had the one next to theirs. Derek of course would be the one sleeping on the couch because he was the boy, or so Casey and Emily argued._

_Casey buried herself in her hotel bed and Emily tried her hardest to cheer her up, "Come on Case. We're going to have fun tonight. We're going to just explore the hotel remember? Go gamble a little? Grab some grub?"_

"_I have no clothes." She muttered, "My hand is still blue and disgusting and I have no clothes to change into."_

"_I'm sure Gina and I can lend you some clothes for tonight."_

"_Then tomorrow and the day after that too." _

_Emily rolled her eyes but realized she might have been acting childish too if she were in Casey's shoes, "Casey, Derek said your bags will be here tomorrow. Tomorrow is your birthday dinner. It'll be here just in time and everything will work out. Today's just a bad day that's all."_

_Casey sighed. She knew Emily was right. Today was just a bad day with the blue toilet water and the delayed luggage fiasco, but yeah she knew things could easily change around here. She was in Vegas after all. Shit happens all the time in Vegas. Far worse than what she was going through. People get married on a whim out here. She let out a laugh, "Yeah, Em, you're right. I need to lighten up. Things will get better. It's Vegas!"_

_Emily let out a breath of relief, "Yes! There's our fun birthday girl Casey! Now come on. It's almost 9. Let's go have some fun. See some lights. We love the lights! Also some _cute_ boys!"_

_Casey smiled. Yeah she wanted to see some boys out here instead of that annoying one that surrounded her to no end. "Yeah, definitely, alright I need to borrow some clothes."_

_--_

_Casey came out the shower with a towel wrapped around her, "Em?" she called until she was startled by Derek staring at her, "Where's Emily?"_

"_She went down with Gina and Sam. They said to meet them over on the first floor and she left clothes in your room." He darted his eyes to her hand and smirked, "Still feelin' blue there, Case?"_

_Casey looked down at his pants, "Still feelin' _stained_ there, Derek?" she battled right back. _

_He sighed, "Yeah, I actually am, which is why _I'm_ staying in." She merely threw him a pathetic laugh and he decided to bring her down for it. He needed some company anyway. This would be too easy, "You know, Casey, I applaud you." He even gave her a little clap. _

_Casey raised an eyebrow and she had a feeling he was going to bring her down, to which she always fell for. She was about to be a Psych grad and there was always that one person who knew how to break her. Sad really, "Wh-why?"_

"_I mean, you still got a blue hand and you're going out to meet new people? Maybe even new guys and you're willing to show them your blue hand. If I met someone like you and you were part smurf, I would've definitely advised you to just stay in." Derek slowly watched as her face formed into a frown and now he knew he'd have company for the rest of the night. _

_Casey stared at her blue hand and realized Derek was right. She'd be the smurf everyone laughed at. Casey wasn't willing to risk humiliation on her first night here, "Damn you, Derek," she said quietly, "I'm going just stay in."_

_Derek's face grew bright, "Great. We can hang out, Sis."_

"_Shut up." She muttered as she paced back into her room. _

_- - - -  
_

"You can be a real asshole sometimes." Casey told him as she slouched back in her seat, crossing her arms.

"Hey! I needed some company and that was the only way I could get some!" He defended his actions, "I mean, jeez, if you didn't pour the damned soda on my pants then I would've gone out that night!"

"Well maybe if you didn't keep distracting me from your damned knocking then I wouldn't have had a blue hand!"

Emily cleared her throat and immediately Derek and Casey screamed at her, "What?!" they yelled in unison.

"I was just going to say that all that is done. There's nothing you can do about it now so how about we continue with the story so we can get this thing over with." Emily advised them to which they calmed down and nodded to continue.

"So yeah, we were stuck in the hotel room…"

- - - -

_There they were bored as hell in their hotel room. Nothing to do while Sam, Gina, and Emily were having a blast downstairs and here was Casey flipping through channels; Derek throwing a paper ball up and down to pass the time. Casey was annoyed and here it came again: the displacement period where she needed to take her frustrations out on someone, of course it was going to be Derek. _

_She turned her head slowly to see him and his paper ball, "Derek, could you _please_ stop?!"_

"_Stop what?" he didn't even look at her instead he kept throwing it up and down; up and down, until he heard her growling. He stopped and looked at her angry face, "Casey, did you realize that you're pretty damn moody lately? Like every time I see you you're like about to kill someone and it's always me you take it out on."_

_She put on a sarcastic smile, "Derek, did you realize that you're pretty damn annoying _all_ the time? Like every time I see you I want to strangle you?"_

_Derek tried to hold in his laughter, "You know for a psychiatrist, you have a problem controlling your own emotions."_

"_It's Psychologist!!" she screamed in frustration. Just then Derek busted out into laughter and Casey just gave up and shared in his laugh. He always did this to her where he'd drive her crazy and was able to make her laugh within five minutes of the craziness. He stopped laughing and stared at her; she stopped to and raised an eyebrow, "Wh-what?"_

"_Let's play a game, Case." She simply furrowed her eyebrows at him, "Alright, here we go. We're stuck here and we've got nothing to do. We might as well have a little fun. Let's play the fast food drinking game."_

_Casey sighed at his attempt to makeup the stupidest games, "What the hell is the fast food drinking game?"_

"_As many times as we've been watching TV, there's like a million fast food commercials. Sonic, Jack-in-the-box, Carl's Jr. In-N-Out. So every time we see a commercial…we drink. Simple."_

_Casey could do nothing but shake her head and throw him a scoff, "We have no drinks, Derek." He got up and walked over to the little fridge next to the TV, "Uh…how about no, Derek. Mini-bars are ridiculously expensive!"_

"_Casey, it's your birthday. Emily wouldn't make you pay… so she will." _

_- - - -  
_

Casey and Derek smiled innocently at Emily, who gave that "if looks could kill" look. "Do you _know_ how much that bill came out to? Because you guys drank the whole damned fridge! There was nothing left except the damned macadamia nuts!" Derek and Casey once again tried to hold in their laughter. "Drunk asses," Emily muttered, "Come on let's finish the story."

"Well," Casey looked at Derek, "that TV played _a lot _of fast food commercials and I don't even remember after that. Do you?" Derek shook his head, "Okay, so this is where you three come in because we don't remember anything after our fast food game, which _was_ pretty genius, Derek." She smiled. Derek threw an arm around her and the smile was gone in an instant, "De-REK!"

Derek quickly took his arm back and looked at the other three, "My wife hates me." He joked.

The three of them laughed at the married couple. "Okay," Sam said, "we all saw you guys when you were already drunk off your asses and ma--"

"We came out the room?" Derek and Casey asked in unison for what seemed like the 100th time. And for that 100th time came that 100th glare they gave one another.

Sam cleared his throat and let out a laugh, "Yeah, it was like midnight already and the three of us were about to head back up…"

-

"_Damn hotel is stealing all my money!!" Sam smacked the slot machine. "Stupid Vegas! I should've just hung out with Derek."_

"_Baby, shut up." Gina chided, "Derek and Casey are probably having a miserable time."_

"_Yeah, I'm pretty sure they are." Emily added in and sighed, "Let's go head up. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day." _

_Emily and Sam's phone both rang at the same time and it was both Derek and Casey. They both answered it and a range of facial expressions came onto their faces as they listened on the other end. "What's going on?!" Gina was out of the loop and it was driving her crazy. "Hello? Answer me?! Sam! Emily!" The two of them hung up their phones and stared at one another with wide eyes. "Someone answer me dammit!!"_

"_They're getting married." Emily and Sam blankly said in unison._

_- - - -  
_

"You guys knew?!" Casey screamed at the three of them, "You guys knew and didn't stop us?!"

"We tried!" the three of them said in unison.

- - - -

"_Getting married?!" Gina screamed. "What are they drunk or something?!"_

_Emily nodded, "Yeah, I could hardly understand her. She was slurring to no end. I thought they were going to stay in the rooms! How the hell did they get drinks?!"_

"_Who cares?!" Sam freaked out, "We need to stop them!"_

_--_

_The three of them were lost and couldn't find the damned chapel that their friends were going to. About 10 minutes of searching, they finally found the chapel and unfortunately they were too late. There they stood. Shocked. _

_There walked out Derek and Casey. They were latched in one another's arms as they laughed hysterically. The rings were on both their hands while Casey pinched Derek's cheeks. "Myyyy husband is soooo adorable! PEOPLE! Adorable! I SAID!" she announced with that horrible slur._

_They both had white shirts on with black writing on it. Casey's said "I BLUE MYSELF" and Derek's said "I MADE A MISTAKE ON MY PANTS". Immediately they knew Derek and Casey had written it since the writing was majorly sloppy. "Thisss isss mah Wife!! My wife! PEOPLE! MY WIFE!" Derek yelled with a slur of his own. _

_Sam couldn't help but laugh at Casey's shirt; he quickly raised an eyebrow, "Those shirts look familiar?" Emily and Gina stared blankly at him. The next thing they knew when they looked back was Mr. and Mrs. Venturi had gone missing again. _

_- - - -  
_

"So the three of us went back to our rooms to see if you guys went up there…

- - - -

_Emily, Sam, and Gina entered the hotel room. What they saw in front of them wasn't what Emily saw when she left. There were mini-bar bottles everywhere; the floor had spills on it; the pillows were scattered all over the place; the couch cushions were out of place. "What the hell happened here?!" Emily screeched. _

"_I'm guessing they got _really_ bored," Sam suggested. He looked at a pissed off Emily and laughed, "Well, come on Gina…" he grabbed her hand, "Emily has a lot to clean here." Emily glared, "Good luck. We'll be back in the morning."_

"_Em, do you want me to help you cl--" Gina offered but Emily quickly snapped._

"_I got it!" she muttered angrily. With that Sam and Gina quickly left. Emily huffed over to the mess that was their room and started to curse underneath their breath. "Damned Venturi's! I'm glad they got married!" She let out a bitter laugh as she threw the pillows on the couch, "They deserve each other!" she angrily threw the little bottles in the trash, "Stupid drunk asses; Stupid Sam and Gina!"_

"_SON OF A BITCH!" she heard Sam scream from next door. _

"_WHAT THE HELL!" she quickly heard Gina scream right after. _

_Finally Emily felt a little better about her situation. _

_- - - -  
_

"So we waited for you guys to come back but we didn't see you until the next morning." Emily told them.

"Really that's it? We didn't like wreck anything, did we?" Casey asked.

Emily looked over at Sam and Gina; she sighed and decided to lie, "Nope." Derek and Casey sat back in their seats and sighed. Together. "You know for two people who hate one another, you guys seem to do a lot of the same things at the same time."

Casey immediately sat up, "No we don't. Anyways your story doesn't help us at all! We still don't know how we got to that hotel room the next morning."

"Well I thought if you told us what you remembered that you would trigger some of the drunken mess you guys forgot." Emily explained. Derek and Casey nodded in agreement and sighed.

Gina sat up with excitement on her face, "Hold up one minute. You two were in a hotel room the next morning. Did you guys--" Sam put a hand over her mouth and apologized to them.

Casey fetched Derek another look and realized there was no use hiding it now. "Yeah," she cringed.

Derek grinned, "Yeah, we d--" he saw Casey's head turn slowly to give him the death stare. He stopped, "I mean. Oh, shucks. EW! We did. Gross. Disgusting!" he looked over at Casey, "Is that better?"

She let out a laugh and shook her head as she turned to the rest of them, "Because we consummated…" she cringed once more, "we couldn't get our annulment. Judge Dumbass said we have to stay separated for a year before we can file for divorce." Casey muttered.

"Well Casey, I don't know why you lied on the forms. You shoulda just said we were drunk!" Derek snapped at her.

"Okay, you idiot, I thought we would need a witness or something that was there to prove we were that drunk to file for intoxication! So I thought impotency was our best bet because we could just lie!" Derek mouth formed the big 'O' for the second time that day.

"IMPOTENCY?!" the three of them yelled out.

Casey nodded, "Yeah. I had to lie on the forms but my stupid short bus of a husband just couldn't pretend for one minute." Emily, Sam, and Gina were in hysterics. Casey smacked Derek's thigh, "So once again, you dummy, this is all your fault!"

"No! It's your fault because you shoulda told me the story beforehand!"

Sam, Gina, and Emily all busted out into laughter while Casey and Derek frowned. "So you're meaning to say that you're going to be stuck in this marriage for a year?! You two. Derek and Casey who can't go a day without yelling at one another? A year?" Casey and Derek both nodded slowly while they blushed with embarrassment. "This is rich!" Emily announced with extreme excitement. "What are you going to tell your parents?!" The married couple stared at one another with wide eyes. Emily stopped her laughing, "You're going to tell them right?"

"We're going figure it out." Derek said and Casey agreed. It was already too much to handle knowing that three other people knew and she couldn't even imagine what their parents would say if they told them they got drunk and married in Vegas.

Their attention was turned to the front door and there came Casey's roommate. "Hey everyone." Her eyes darted over at Derek and she blushed with a smile, "Hey, Derek."

Derek gave her his infamous smirk, "Hey, Linds--" and the next everyone saw was Casey smack Derek's thigh. "Ow!" he scowled. "What was that for?" Casey then just realized what she did. She was stopping Derek from looking at another girl. She never did that. What was she thinking? Why was she stopping Derek from looking at another girl? Her face drew blushes all over as she looked around at the all the faces staring at her. Derek: raising an eyebrow. Lindsay: frowning as she went straight to her room. Sam and Gina: giggling. Emily: grinning. "Um, Case?"

Casey's breathing was erratic now even more because she didn't have an answer, "Uh…it's getting late you guys." She mentally slapped herself for being so obvious with her subject change.

"Yeah, Casey's right." Sam said as he and Gina got off the chair. "Derek, you coming?"

At that moment Derek also did something he never did. Derek Venturi was known to do whatever he wanted. No one could boss him around; he made his own decisions and if he felt like doing something he would; he wasn't going to wait for a response or an answer from anyone but himself. Now at this moment he merely looked at Casey for an answer; for a response as to whether he should go or stay. This wasn't normal Derek and the three friends stared at them with raised eyebrows, "Do you want me to go?"

Again Casey was hounded with blushes as all eyes were on her once more. She focused her attention back on Derek, "Yeah. Just go ahead. We'll talk about this tomorrow." He nodded and got up. They all said their goodbyes and Casey let them out. She sat back on the couch where Emily continued to grin at her, "What is your deal, woman?!"

"Oh, come on, Casey. Don't tell me you're going to forget about what you did a minute ago." She chided.

"I don't know _what_ you're talking about." Casey lied. She knew exactly what Emily was referring to, she just wasn't ready to talk about it.

But knowing Emily, she was going to hound until she got her way, "You're starting to like him, aren't you?"

Casey laughed nervously, "This is Derek we're talking about. Derek Venturi, my step-brother. Never in any lifetime will I like him."

Emily snorted, "Yeah, okay, but you didn't like him looking at your roommate, who has like a major crush on him."

"I had a brain fart, alright?" Casey simply said because that's what she chose to believe was her reason for doing what she did.

"You know, if you keep having those, you're going to make one _shitty_ psychologist." Emily nodded toward her as she stood up.

"That's what I hear." Casey sighed.

--

"So, you wait for your wife to tell you what to do now?" Sam joked as they headed to their cars.

Derek scoffed, "I don't know _what_ the hell you're talking about." Derek lied. He knew exactly what Sam was insinuating. Sam snorted while Gina giggled from the side of them, "Casey and I just have a lot more to sort out that's why I asked. Simple as that," Derek tried to assure them.

"Sort out the fact that she doesn't like you looking at other girls, D?" Sam and Gina were giggling like idiots.

"Oh shut up, guys. It's not what you think. We just have a joke going between us two." He assured them once more.

Sam and Gina both snorted extremely loud, "What? Act like a real married couple?"

"We do not." Derek laughed nervously as he blushed, "Plus we're separated, remember? No acting like we're married. That would never happen. Even when hell freezes over, would that ever happen." They all laughed and got into their cars. Derek sat there for a second as he looked up at her building, "Like a real married couple." He said aloud to himself and let out a slight smile. He quickly wrinkled his nose about what he just did, "No!" he started his car as fast as he could and rolled out.

--

Casey was already set for bed and all she could hear in her head was Emily's stupid words. "You're starting to like him, aren't you?" She muttered in a mocking voice, "I do _not_ like him. He's just my husband." Casey realized she had a slight smile on her face and quickly grabbed her pillow and screamed into it, "Son of a bitch!"

* * *

**Okay so don't worry... eventually we'll hit the marriage part of the drunken mess... I couldn't give the whole story in one chapter.. **

**"I BLUE MYSELF" WHY!! Why can't I stop laughing?!**

**stay amazing, guys. : )**


	4. Ross and Rachel are Cuddle Buddies

**AN: You guys are pretty beastastic :)**

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned. Especially FRIENDS. **

* * *

Casey McDonald has become quite the hostile individual. Yeah, she really has. The pressure of school and the pressure of finishing it with some sort of degree had made her pretty crazy. Her studies were more and more difficult and she hardly ever got sleep because of all the work she had to do. It didn't help that she had a second provider of crazy… Derek Venturi. He's always around. She never had an answer for it. "Why?" is all she could ask and Derek never seemed to answer her, he just took it as a clear sign to make her more crazy. Now they were married. Hostile to the 10th degree.

She awoke to the sound of knocking on her bedroom door; she buried her head underneath her pillow, "Go away!" she growled.

The knock was there again and Casey was getting frustrated; she just wanted it to stop. Casey angrily got out of bed and opened it to see Derek smiling brightly at her, "Good morning, Wife."

Casey growled at him, "What did I say about that?" he answered her with a laugh while she opened the door for him to come in, "I swear in that sick little head of yours that you're actually enjoying this," she told him as she buried herself in her blanket again. "Why are you here, Derek?" her voice slightly muffled, "You know we're supposed to be separated right?"

She felt a dip on the edge of her bed and immediately she knew he was sitting there. Derek slowly pulled the blanket off of her face. She could see the slight grin form on his lips and she wondered how he always so bubbly; not a care in the world. You would think that a drunken marriage would bring him down but no. It gave him more ammunition for joking with her, "Yeah, Casey. I know we're separated. And we _are_ separated because we don't live in the same house, dummy. Plus you said we're going to talk today. So come on, I'm starving. Let's go back to that diner. I want some pancakes…" he was rambling on and Casey just shook her head. Was she this dense because right now was the first time she was realizing that maybe they were actually friends? Friends go out and have breakfasts with one another and hang out at each other's homes. Usually she did these things with Emily and Gina, who would occasionally bring Sam along; but now. Now here was Derek, who was _always _around. "…I need some coffee because once I woke up I came straight here."

"Why?" she simply asked him.

He raised an eyebrow, "Why what?"

"Why did you come straight here once you woke up? Did I miss something because it seems like we're friends?"

Derek felt like he was on the hot seat because he had no explanation for the things he does. He woke up this morning and the first thing he thought about doing was coming to Casey's so they could go grab breakfast. He didn't know why. Even he knew that they weren't friends. They were just labeled as step-siblings who hate one another. Now he sat here in front of her, thinking about what she just said. Were they friends? Because now it started to seem like they were. He had a blast torturing her and he _did_ enjoy her company…on most days. It only meant one thing. Derek simply shrugged, "Yeah, Case. I guess we're friends…" Derek felt like this was getting to be too much of a serious conversation so he decided to add, "…and you know what the best part is?" he whispered closer to her; she raised an eyebrow, "we're married!" he yelled aloud with a playful smile that he also saw creeping up on Casey's lips. He stood up and yanked the blanket off of her, "Come on, get up."

Casey decided to just let her thoughts go and have some fun. Over-thinking when it came to Derek was never going to work. It just gave her that familiar migraine named after her husband, "Fine, _Hubby_."

Derek playfully laughed, "See! It's fun!"

Casey shook her head and offered him a chuckle, "Yeah, maybe."

--

"So are we going to tell our parents?" Casey asked as she took a sip of her coffee.

Derek shrugged and stuffed a pancake in his mouth. "I_mm_don_mm_kn_mmm--_" he mumbled with his mouth full and all Casey could do was blink as she sipped on her coffee once more. "I_m_mea_mmm_I_mm_no_mmm_sure_m_if--"

Casey brought her eyes to focus on his mouth. The pieces of masticated pancake rolling around inside as he spoke or _tried_ to speak; was one that'll haunt her for the rest of her life. What was sad about it was the fact that he kept talking like it were a normal thing to speak with all that food in your mouth. He even thought he was getting out the right words when the truth was Casey couldn't understand a damned thing he was saying. And once she felt something wet hit the side of her cheek, she knew she had enough of this horrorfest, "STOP!" she screamed. Just then the room became silent as everyone looked at her and there she went blushing from the embarrassment that Derek caused her to put on herself.

Derek looked around at everyone who stared at them, "It's okay people! We're just playing a game! Yeah, Casey, red means stop! Ha-ha! Great job!" and everyone went back to whatever they were doing while Derek raised an eyebrow at her, "Stop what?"

"Talking with your mouthful! Please!" she cried out, "I felt a piece of your pancake fly on my cheek and now I need to shower. Please! Just eat normal!" she demanded and he just chuckled at her. "So anyways, what are we going to tell our parents?"

"Like I _said_," Casey rolled her eyes, "I don't know and I'm not even sure if we should tell him. I mean it's not like we have to act all coupley or anything. We just act normal because we act like we're separated anyway. It's a year of being normal. If we told them we would just get a big lecture on our hands and we'd never be able to be trusted to fly out the country on our own. We're 21 and they'd find a way to ban us like we were still kids."

Casey knew he had a point. Everything he offered her was fair and they'd be fine with telling no one else. Their friends wouldn't tell anyone so they were in the clear. "You're right. It's our secret."

"Plus they'd tell us to get an annulment and they'd be pissed off at the fact we screwed that up." Casey nodded in agreement, "Then they'd figure out we consummated our ma--"

Casey took a deep breath and closed her eyes, "Don't say it."

"What? Consummating our marriage?" Derek laughed out loud and he could see how much it annoyed Casey. "I mean you shouldn't act like you hated consummating with me because you didn't." She glared with a sarcastic smile and stomped on his foot, "Ow! What the hell is the matter with you?! Have you ever heard of a joke?" He wrinkled his nose toward her, "I mean, jeez, you told me over and over again, 'Don't stop! Don't stop! De-REK, don't stop!'" he mocked her consummating moans in a Casey voice, "so I di--" he saw The Exorcist in front of him once more and coughed out a terrified laugh, "I'm kidding. Okay? I'm kidding."

Casey blushed with embarrassment because she knew what Derek was saying was true. Sadly for the past few days of _trying_ to remember what happened that was the only thing she _did_ remember during the crazy night: Consummating with Derek. "Please let's just talk about something else?" He nodded, "I keep wondering why the other three didn't tell us we were married the day after because they acted pretty casual about it. I mean they saw us coming out of the chapel and it was like they knew nothing of it."

He brought his coffee mug to his lips and took a sip, "Well I asked Sam and Gina that last night and they told me it was because we pretended like _we_ didn't know yet. And they were scared to mention it because it was your birthday and they knew you had a pretty horrifying day when we got there so they didn't want to ruin it for you."

Casey put on a sarcastic smile as she muttered, "Well ain't that just pretty dang sweet of them." Derek didn't respond, instead he stuffed another pancake in his mouth and smile brightly at her as the chunks of bread peeked out on his teeth.

Casey even believed she threw up in her mouth a little.

- - - -

_Derek sat down nursing his cheek after Casey slapped him. Casey paced back and forth in front of him; she bit her nails to help her think about her situation; their situation. She fetched him a look, "I'm sorry, I hit you."_

"_Don't apologize because it _didn't_ hurt." Ego ringing in and Casey rolled her eyes at him, "Anywhoo, Wife, what the hell are we going to do?" he looked around the hotel room that clearly wasn't the one they hung out in the day before. This one was much nicer; huge now that he got to actually take a look at it, "How the hell did we get this place?"_

"_Derek, could you maybe," she shrugged, "NOT call me Wife?!"Casey yelled at him._

"_I'm just stating the facts here, Casey." He explained, "You can call me Husband or Hubby if you li--" she huffed over to him and put a hand on either side of his cheeks so he could stop; she squeezed as hard as she could so he looked like a fish, "Touchy." Derek squeaked out._

_She let go and also took a look around. It definitely was the nicest hotel she'd ever been in, "I have no idea. This place is gorgeous, how the hell did we get it?"_

"_Ugh!" he groaned, "I just asked you that same exact question. Pointless, Casey, really," he knew he was annoying her and it only made him more happy, "But aren't you glad we celebrated our first night of marriage in a badass place like this?" _

_Casey saw the excitement on his face and all she could wonder was how un-phased he was about their situation. She slightly glared as she crossed her arms, "Yeah, out of all the things I'm feeling right now…it's _glad _that sticks out."_

"_Well good. Had to be memorable right?" He continued to laugh as her annoyance level got higher and higher then his cell phone rang and he answered it as Casey intently watched him. He hung up and looked at her, "Bag's are here."_

_She let out a sigh of relief, "Oh, thank God."_

"_Yeah, let's hurry up and get out of here because I'm not paying for a room I don't remember getting." He picked up the shirts off the floor. "Are these yours?" He held them up so Casey could see._

_Casey shook her head, "Never seen those shirts in my life."_

_Derek shrugged and put one of them on, "They kinda look like Sam's shirts." Then he read it and started to laugh, "These are genius." He put the rest of his clothes on as they walked out. Derek watched as Casey kept grazing the side of her head, "What's wrong with you?"_

_Casey wrinkled her nose, "I don't know. I have a bump on the side of my head. However the hell I got it…I bet you're to blame," she glared. _

_Derek rolled his eyes, "I bet you're to blame." He mocked her._

_--_

"_Okay, so let's go over this one more time." Casey told him as they stood in front of their _real_ hotel room. "Rings off?"_

_Derek whined, "Yes, it is! And I know! It's our secret. I won't tell them. I won't joke around about it in front of them either. I promise. Let's just go." She was about to put in her entry card but Derek stopped her; she looked up at him, "Happy Birthday, by the way." _

_Casey was able to calm down for a second and offer him a smile, "Thanks."They went in and there sat their three friends, who had concern on their faces. "Hey guys!" Casey tried to act normal, "Me and Derek just went to get our bags."The three of them opened their mouths but Casey quickly spoke, "We're gonna get ready and let's go grab breakfast, shall we?" _

_Casey quickly paced over to her room to avoid questions while she left Derek for bait. He stood there and laughed a nervous laugh, "So guys…" they just blinked at him and quickly needed to escape, "I'm just gonna go change…" he darted toward the bathroom. _

_Sam, Gina, and Emily shared a look. _

"_I guess they don't know since Casey hasn't killed him yet." Sam inquired._

_Emily shrugged, "Maybe, maybe not. I'm not willing to risk happy normal Casey for crazy I-need-to-strangle-Derek-right-now Casey." _

_Gina just nodded, "I side with Emily. So baby," she looked at Sam, "you better not say a thing."_

_Sam scoffed, "I never say _anything_!" he heard Gina and Emily snort toward him._

_--_

_They treated Casey to a little birthday breakfast that morning and there was no mention of their secret marriage. They all were having a great time. _Finally_ Casey was having a great time. "Hey Casey, doesn't this remind you of that one FRIENDS episode?" Emily asked and immediately Casey blushed and knew which one; the one where Ross and Rachel got drunkenly married in Vegas. "Oh come on, Casey. It's your favorite show. You know which one I'm talking about?"_

_Casey shook her head like an idiot, "Uh…it's been off the air for quite some time. Care to refresh my memory?" She took a quick glance at Derek then back at Emily._

"_You know that one where Rachel has a birthday breakfast because she turned 30?" Emily laughed as did Sam and Gina._

_Quickly, Casey let out a sigh of relief. "Yeah, it does remind me of that episode." She let out a laugh, "I'm Rachel Green. Yay!" she tried her hardest to make this morning uncomfortable. The best she could do was joke._

_Sam then turned to look at Derek, "And who are you Ross?" He laughed to himself and everyone's eyes became wide, "It also reminds me of that episode where they were in Veg--" Sam was interrupted by Emily's foot meeting his shin with impressive force. He stopped. "Shit!" he muttered to himself then looked back and Derek and Casey; deadpanned, "No, never mind it doesn't remind me of anything else."_

_Derek and Casey raised an eyebrow but thought nothing of it._

_- - - -  
_

"Those bastards knew!" Casey slammed her coffee mug on the table and everyone looked their way again, "I can't believe I didn't realize it before. Sam was going to mention the Vegas episode of 'Friends' but Emily kicked him because they knew! That's why he said you're Ross!" She looked at the people, "Go on with your business; nothing to see here." They stopped staring and she focused her attention on Derek.

He snorted, "Well it's not like you're finding out anything new. We know that they know that we know that we're married."

Casey just blinked at him. "What?"

Derek rubbed his forehead and closed his eyes as he groaned out, "Too much thinking. I can't think anymore. You make my head hurt, Casey!"

Casey had a triumphant grin, "Now you know how it feels!" Then she sat and thought; Derek was actually being tolerable until she realized maybe he usually _is_ tolerable. "Hm…" she let out to herself.

"What?" She shook her head to which Derek raised an eyebrow, "Well I'm just about done here. You?"

"I've been done. I lost my appetite once you stuffed the whole pancake into your mouth." She muttered with disgust.

"That takes skill, Mrs. Venturi." He saw her become full of rage once more. How he managed to do this to her was anybody's guess but he just knew he did a great job at it. If he could get paid for driving the poor girl crazy, he'd be the richest person alive, "Crap. You're going to hit me again aren't you?"

Casey got out of her seat and took five deep breaths and finally looked at his terror ridden face, "No." One more deep breath was let out, "Let's go." She turned to walk out the door and she heard him let out his own breath of relief right behind her. It made her smile in that psycho kind of way.

--

Casey was about to open the door to her apartment and here came Derek following her, "Ugh, seriously? Do you _ever_ go home?"

Derek brought his hands over his heart, "Ouch!" he muttered sarcastically, "And yes, I do have a home to go to but unfortunately is filled with love-sick puppies also known as our best friends. So if you don't mind, sweetheart," he pinched her cheeks to annoy her, "I need a place to hang for a bit."

She smacked his hand off her face, "Derek," she said as calm as she could and immediately reached up and grabbed his ear. She got closer to it, "I swear to God that once I'm done with you you'll be impotent just like those forms said."

She let go and he frowned as he rubbed his ear, "Fine." He muttered.

Her smile was back, "Good. Now no more of this marriage, wife, and husband talk because your girlfriend is inside." She joked.

"Girlfriend?" he jokingly scoffed, "I can't have a girlfriend when I have my wife. It's unethical." Casey's eyebrows darted to her hairline; he rolled his eyes, "I know words like that Casey. I'm not a total idiot. Plus that girl is like a stalker," he cringed.

"It didn't stop you from looking at her yesterday," she muttered quietly to herself. In an instant Casey wanted to smack herself for saying that.

Unfortunately for her, Derek heard what she said. He grinned, "Jealous of your husband looking at other women, eh Case?"

Casey shook her head. It took all of her strength to keep her hands from wrapping around his neck and choking him to his demise. She took another calming deep breath and opened her door where they came in and saw Lindsay sitting on the couch watching TV. "Hey Linds."

"Hey Casey…" she turned her focus on her crush, "Uh… hey Derek."

Derek could hear Casey snort next to him and he tried to hold it in too, "Uh hey, Lindsay." He then saw Casey trying to make an escape. Well not really escaping; she was just heading to her room, "Case, where are you going?" he followed her into her room.

Casey went over to her dresser and took her earrings off; she could see him in the mirror, "You're like a puppy that can't find a home." She joked with him.

"Well what do you expect? You're willing to leave me out there with the stalker."

Casey choked out a laugh, "Well I have a bunch of homework I want get done before class tomorrow so your best bet is to hang out with her because I'll just bore you." Casey turned around and looked at him, "Or better yet?! You can just mosey on out of here and go back to your cave you call a home." she expressed with bright sarcasm.

"Ha-ha." He simply said.

She reached for the books on her desk and sat on her bed, crossed legged as she opened her books to start reading. Not a minute later he came and lay on her bed. Casey took a deep breath and tried to calm down, "Derek, what the hell do you think you're doing? I mean it was enough that you keep coming over but now you're here on my bed…"

"Calm yourself, woman. I am sleepy. I need to sleep! I can't nap on the couch because Lindsay Lohan is out there. So let me sleep and I'll let you study. Simple. Now leave me alone." He growled. Casey knew there was no arguing with him. She sighed and snatched her favorite pillow from underneath him, "Hey!"

"This is my favorite pillow, Derek. I am _not_ gonna to let you drool all over it."

Derek focused his eyes on the pillow and found a few embarrassing stains on it, "Casey," he choked out a laugh, "I think you drooled enough on there for the both of us--" he instantly hit him with her favorite pillow; over and over again. He kept laughing and she kept cursing at him with a shriek of her own. Finally he put both hands on her wrists to stop her and she stopped. They both stopped. There was an awkward silence as they stared at one another. Blinking as both their breathing shortened.

Being this close to him was happening too often and it was freaking her out. Finally she was able to snap out of this trance she was in, "Derek," she breathed.

"Yeah, Case?"

"I have work to do and you need to nap." He just stared at her and she noticed his hands were still in place, "Your hands…"

He looked down and laughed nervously while all he felt was embarrassment, "Sorry." Derek took his hands off of her and ran a hand through his hair, "Ca--"

"Derek, don't worry about it." She assured him, "We just caught up with our little pillow fight. That's all." She joked and quickly went back to her studying. Derek on the other hand took one of her pillows and put it over his face to hide is embarrassment. He forced himself to sleep off what just happened and she forced herself to get lost in her studying to help _her_ forget what just happened.

--

"Casey…" he grumbled, "your hair is in my face…"

"Well, I can't breathe with your smelly breath," Casey coughed out and she slowly opened her eyes. That comfy pillow was Derek's chest once more. Why does this keep happening? This never happened before. They were supposed to be going through a marital separation and this surely didn't feel like it. Casey abruptly sat up and pushed him off the bed to hear a loud thud followed by a whine of some sort. "Derek, _why_ do you keep trying to cuddle with me?!" she muttered in a whisper.

She could hear him laughing from the floor so she crawled over to the edge of the bed and saw him laughing his ass off, "I'm sorry, Casey, but _you_ were the one that cuddled with me!"

"No!" she blushed.

Derek nodded his head rapidly and kept laughing at her, "Yes, you surely did, Wife! Because _I _was asleep and you were still awake and that could only mean that _you_ fell asleep next to me. Thus leading _us_ to be cuddling! You _totally_ cuddled with me!" Derek could see her face turning red, "And by the color of your face, Wifey, I can see you know I'm right." He sat up and crossed his arms, "So…you liked it? You like cuddling with your husband?"

"No," she simply said, "Not a chance in hell would I ever admit to liking that ever with you."

Derek crawled closer to the bed, "Uh-huh…you won't admit it but that doesn't mean deep down you didn't." He smiled brightly and pinched her cheeks, "Aw…" she was turning apple red, "my cuddle buddy. We should definitely do it again sometime." He pursed his lips in thought, "I'm free on Tuesday and Thursday nigh--" he was shut up with a pillow meeting the side of his head. He was in hysterics and raised his hands to shield him from the constant pillow hits, "Casey! I surrender!" he grabbed the pillow, "I'm just kidding, okay?" He let out another laugh, "Tuesdays and Thursdays aren't good. We can do Saturday?" Casey took another pillow and screamed into it and Derek just couldn't stop laughing at her, "Don't go all psycho-illogical on me!" he stood up and contained his laughter, "I guess I'll get going."

"Thank God!" Casey groaned muffled from her pillow.

Derek was tempted to mess with her some more so he slowly went over to her and patted her butt to get her attention, "Come on, Casey. I gotta le--" he watched her head do that slow turn toward him; that infamous glare that he was so used to seeing, had made its comeback.

"Did you just do what I think you did?" she muttered toward him, "Did your hand just touch what I felt it touch?!"

Derek was in no joking matter anymore. The only thing he could register was how terrified he became when Casey gave him that look, "I just needed you to get up. That's all," he laughed nervously, "Okay, come on now. I need you to let me out." She slowly got up and her hands formed into fists and the next thing he knew was him running out of the room; toward the front door and right behind him was Casey chasing him. "Casey! I'm leaving! Don't kill me!"

They made their way to the door, "Leave! Please!" and Derek couldn't help but laugh at her and Casey immediately shoved him out without another word. "Finally." She stood there with her back against the door and screamed a frustrated scream.

"I can still hear you Casey." Derek said from the other side of the door.

"CAN YOU LEAVE?!" she screamed at him.

She heard him chuckle like an idiot, "I'm going! I'm going!"

* * *

**Poor Casey...she is seriously getting mentally abused by him. lawl.**

**amazing? yeah...that's what you all are. Keep it up ;)**


	5. Happy Spouse Time!

**AN: So I want apologize to you guys for the slow updates...haha. If anyone has stuck with me before they know I just LOVE to update like everyday. I really do...it's sad. So anywhoo... I know I've been a bit slow but summer session classes are starting like today and it's going to blow my mind. blerg!**

**Random note:I saw two birds yesterday. One was annoying the other, who was trying to get away from the annoying one. It reminded me of Derek and Casey. True story... o.o  
**

**disclaimer: Nothing owned. Sucks.**

* * *

Casey was studying on the couch. She had so much work to do before finals. Graduation was in three months and she had a lot she was dealing with. But she was still her old self. That old Casey McDonald that always got her work done ahead of time and was always prepared when it came to school. She was going to graduate with high honors in her class and her life was going as planned. Yes, all that was still the same except for that remaining fact that she was secretly married to her step-brother. Yeah, it put a damper on her schedule because he would always come over to bother her. Then sometimes she couldn't get much of her studying done but shockingly she didn't really mind.

They were in month two of their marital "separation" and there was still no progress in their amnesic state. They still had no idea _how_ they got married and what happened in Vegas. Maybe they still didn't know because they spent most of their time joking around. It was enjoyable and Casey seemed to realize that Derek was actually fun to have around. Her husband was actually fun to have around.

She was in the middle of studying and she heard a knock on the door so she got up to go answer it. Casey groaned because she knew exactly who it was. "I swear, Derek, you just have nothing better to do with your time."

Derek wrinkled his nose in a playful manner, "Nice to see you too, Wife." He brought himself into her apartment.

"Okay," she said sarcastically, "come _right_ in." She closed the door and right when she turned around, Casey saw Derek already comfy on the couch, sitting there with a soda and flipping through the channels. "Don't kill him. Don't kill him." She took five deep breaths and made her way back to the couch. With a fake smile plastered, "Derek," he looked at her, "oh, sweet husband of mine. What brings you over to _my_ apartment today?" she expressed with such sweet sarcasm.

He shrugged and looked back at the TV, "I was bored. Sam and Gina kept being gross in the apartment so I needed to get out."

"Hm…this is the," Casey pretended to count her fingers and shrugged, "100th time in a row that you've come over here."

Derek nodded like it was an obvious answer, "Yeah, so why do you always ask when I get here." He shook his head and turned his attention back at the TV, "Goodness, woman. You are like a broken record." He sat up and made girly postures to mock her, "Oh, Derek! Why are you here again! Derek?! What the hell! Derek! I'm trying to study! Why are you here today?! Derek! Derek! De-REK!" he turned his head to look at her. He could see the anger rushing to her face so he tried to calm her down with a laugh, "Heh-heh…Casey, my favorite wife…"

"Don't my favorite wife me, Husband." She muttered and quickly went back to her studying. There was silence in the room; Casey was studying and Derek was paying attentive attention to the show he was watching.

Not even five minutes later came Derek trying to break silence by being annoying, "Hey Casey, what are you studying?" Casey sighed and ignored him. "Case?" he whispered, "Whatcha studying?"

Casey slammed her highlighter down and looked at Derek, "I'm studying Interpersonal Phenomena." Derek furrowed his eyebrows, "Okay, are you really interested in knowing? Or are you just trying to bother me and help me _not_ pass my final exams?"

Derek was serious, "I'm really interested in knowing. So what's that Interspectacular Personalities?" Casey broke out into laughter and Derek frowned, "What? I said I wanna know!"

Casey shook her head and tried to contain her laughter; she closed her books and set it in front of her, "I can never study when you're here." She got comfy next to him as they watched TV, "Derek, we should definitely try and remember some stuff about Vegas. We never talk about it when we're together."

"Because you always bother me when I'm here!" he jokingly muttered.

Casey glared again and didn't catch onto the fact he was kidding. Yeah, she was a smarty pants but there were times when she just couldn't understand sarcasm, "That is far from the truth!"

Derek smiled, "Calm down, I'm just kidding." Casey rolled her eyes while he put the remote down, "Okay. So is there anything you remember?" he asked her.

Casey pursed her lips in thought, "Well I vaguely remember our drinking game."

Derek grinned, "Good times, eh?"

Casey shook her head and snorted, "Good times that got us married!"

Derek shrugged, "Married or not. I loved that game." Immediately Casey could see his face become all serious, "So that's all you remember?"

Casey raised an eyebrow at him, "Uh…yeah?"

- - - -

"_Jack-in-the-box, Casey!!" Derek screamed as the commercial came on, "Drink!!" They twisted opened their little caps off the mini-bar bottles of alcohol. "Drink, Case!"_

"_I cannot do it!" she sloppily tried to twist open her cap, "Stupid bottle!!" she threw it on the floor in a mini-drunken rage, "Gimme yours! Share, Derek!"_

_Derek hugged and shielded his tiny bottle away from Casey and yelled, "No! Thissss is mine! That's your bottle!"_

_Casey glared and pounced on him as they fought for the bottle. It was like their old fights over the TV remote except now it was over alcohol while they were stuck in a hotel room. "De-REK! Gimme!! NOW!!" Derek broke free from her and got off the couch. He quickly held in front of her his bottle to show off and he was well prepared to open it, "Derek. I said share!" He slowly started to twist it, "Derek! You better not!"She stood up and slowly paced toward him as if stalking prey; he twisted it open and threw the cap on the floor._

_Derek was not going to give his drink up. It was too important to him. He slowly brought it up to his mouth as he paced backwards and away from her. "Myyyyyyyy bot--" Casey tackled him and the alcohol spilled all over the room's floor. "Dammit, Casey!! Look what you did!!"_

_She smacked his shoulder as she tried to get off of him, "You dint share!! Now we have no more!" Casey and Derek both turned their head to the unopened bottle she threw on the floor earlier and they jumped over to try and grab it. They both had a hand on it but Derek was stronger, "DEREK! That wasmyyyyy bottle!!"_

"_Too late! I can open it. You can't! HAHA" he twisted open the cap and threw it on the floor again. He quickly tried to pour it in his mouth; got a few drops in and Casey quickly grabbed his wrist and pulled the direction of the bottle to drop in her mouth; she got a few drops in and Derek pulled it back toward him. This went on until the bottle was empty. Derek threw it angrily on the floor. "Now look! There's no more! Now what, Casey?!"_

_Casey and Derek both dropped on the couch and looked all over the floor at the empty little bottles. "Derek! I want more drinks!" she whined. _

"_Me too!" he buried his head in his hands. Finally he looked up and turned to look at Casey, "Let's get out of here!!" he yelled. "LET'S GET OUT! I'M BORED!!"_

"_ME TOO!" she yelled back at him. "I WANNA MORE DRINKSSSS!" _

"_LET'S GO!"He stood up and jumped in front of her, "COME ON!" he grabbed her hands and pulled her up._

"_But what about our clothes?" she whispered. "I'm blue and you're staineded." _

"_It's okay," he whispered right back, "I gotsss an idea!"_

_--_

_They snuck into Sam and Gina's room, "Shh…" Derek whispered as they tip-toed into the room even though they knew no one was in there. They both went into Sam's luggage and rummaged through his things, throwing all of his clothes everywhere. They got out two white shirts, "We need markers!" he whispered loudly. _

_Casey went into the bathroom and looked around, "DEREK I FOUND EYELINER!!" she yelled._

_Derek ran into the bathroom, "THAT'LL DO!!"_

"_WHAT ARE WE DOING?!" she yelled right in front of him._

"_YOU'LL SEE!" he put the shirts on the floor and they both kneeled down. _

_--_

_Derek and Casey finally put their shirts on after putting it on the wrong way 10 times. "Look!" she whispered and grabbed his hand, "Look what I did!!" Derek looked over at what she did and they broke out in hysterical laughter. _

"_HAHAH!! IT SAYS 'DON'T FORGET TO USE PROTECTION!' HAHAH!" Derek let out. _

"_FUNNY RIGHT?!" Derek nodded, "OKAY! LET'S GET MORE DRINKS!!"_

"_YAY!"_

- - - -

Derek and Casey were in hysterics at the thought of it. "Those really were good times." Casey breathed out.

Derek nodded, "Hell yeah. Man we really did wreck that hotel room. Actually both hotel rooms were pretty trashed. Our poor friends cleaned up for us," Derek jokingly pouted toward her.

Casey did the same, "They paid for everything too!"

Derek sighed, "Man we got away with a lot of shit over there." He gave her a smirk, "You, Wife, are quite a riot when you let loose."

Casey never let loose. She was always the serious and all about studying type of girl. Derek knew this; everyone knew this. Casey herself knew this. She hardly ever had fun. Well her idea of fun was staying home and studying or having a girls day out with Emily and Gina. She was the same girl she was back then.

For the past two months, she was actually experiencing a new type of fun. She would never admit this to him but Derek was her idea of fun. Yeah, she complained and complained whenever he came over but once he got settled down, she enjoyed herself. She enjoyed him. Life was a lot more fun nowadays and it was because of her husband. But he would always be the same annoying human being.

Casey shrugged, "Maybe you bring it out of me, Derek Venturi."

He grinned, "She admits it! I make her fun!" he looked at her and settled his laughter, "Well Mrs. Venturi, you bring something out of me too."

Casey raised a curious eyebrow, "And what would that something be?"

He got closer to her face and she was a little startled by the proximity, "You, Casey Venturi, make me…"

"Wh-what?" she let out nervously.

"You make me…boring!" he pulled back and continued to scream out in laughter. Even smacking his leg to show how funny he thought he was. Casey glared at him and smacked him upside the head, "Hey!" he arched his eyebrows, "You just love to physically abuse me don't you?" she smiled and he started to rub his mini injury, "Whatever happened to no violence; no fighting?!"

Casey let out a chuckle, "Yeah that still applies to me. I hate violence and I'll always be opposed it. _But _when it comes to you…that's a different story."

"Oh, is that so?" Casey nodded, "Well in that case, _Wife_, that'll give me more ammunition to mentally abuse _you_." He beamed.

Casey shook her head and looked at the kitchen then back at Derek, "Well Hubby, I need to clean the kitchen. You should get going, so I can actually get something done here." She stood up and made her way into the kitchen, "Just let yourself out and I'll lock it." Derek got up and didn't head to the front door, instead he went into the kitchen to join her, "Seriously, a lost puppy." She shook her head, "Are you ever going to go home?" Casey expressed such high annoyance with him.

Her annoyance always made him laugh, "I don't feel like going home yet. I'll help you clean your kitchen."

Casey raised an eyebrow. Derek never attempted to help her clean. Actually he never cleaned at all unless he was bribed or forced to by their parents, but that hasn't been done since they were younger. "What's the catch?"

Derek raised his hands in defense, "No catch. I'd love to help my wife clean her apartment's kitchen. That's all. I promise."

Casey was still unconvinced but she nodded a reluctant nod, "Fine."

--

For the past hour Derek hardly helped her clean. He basically just sat around and made fun of the way she looked when she scrubbed a counter and washed a dish. He'd occasionally get up and hand her something she asked for but that was about it. Immediately Casey knew that was the catch: not helping at all.

Derek was bored. He was extremely bored and he realized he got this way a lot when he was hanging out with Casey but for some crazy reason he was drawn to come over so much. He wasn't quite sure; there was something about Casey that drew him to come around a lot. Maybe it was how easy she was to bother or how exhilarating it felt when she got pissed off at him; he wasn't sure. He would attempt to try and figure out what was actually going on within him but then his head would hurt and he'd think about bothering Casey again. Cycle would start all over.

He subconsciously was writing his name on the table with his finger as he watched her clean some more. He sighed really loud to get her attention. She didn't pay him any so he sighed even louder; this time she turned slowly to give him an annoyed look. "What do you want, Derek?"

Derek rested his chin on the palm of his hand and just stared at her. "I'm trying to figure out how an hour has passed and you're still not done cleaning."

Casey put on a sarcastic smile, "Aw, is my husband bored out his mind?" He nodded rapidly. "Well, Derek, why don't you just," she shrugged with purse lips, "leave?"

Derek let out a laugh, "I can't leave, Casey. I'm spending quality time with my wife." She rolled her eyes and continued her cleaning duties. Derek had been wondering for a while and she was busy in cleaning mode to hit him or attempt to hit him so why not ask? He sat up, "Hey, Case?"

She sighed and continued to wipe the counters, "What Derek?"

He shrugged, "You seeing any guys?" He saw Casey stop her scrubbing and turn to look at him with a raised eyebrow, "I'm just curious, you know…"

"Derek, do you see me going out with other guys?" He shrugged, "Well the answers no." At that moment a wave of relief washed over him and at that same exact moment came questioning of why he felt that way. "I mean, come on Derek, you're the closest thing to a guy I'm seeing," Casey stifled a laugh then went back to scrubbing.

He laughed nervously, "Yeah, cause I'm your husband."

"Not to mention you're _always _here." She let out a small laugh then got quiet; she turned around. She thought it was only fair if she asked too, "Are _you_ seeing any girls?"

"Not at the moment…but at the same time I don't really think I've been looking." He stood up and thought it was time to mess with her a little bit. He was due for a good yell or smack from her. Derek went closer to her, pinching her chin as his face scrunched into a big ball of happy, "You know I only have eyes for my wife. Not trying to commit adultery, here, Casey."

She immediately smacked his hand away from her face and let out sardonic chuckle. "It comes with morals!" she joked.

"Yeah, yeah…" he went over to fridge and started the raid, "Casey, can I eat this?" Derek pulled out a plate of leftover stuffed chicken breast.

Casey stopped her scrubbing and blew the hair out of her face as she looked at him, "Go ahead. Just don't set anything on fire, okay?"

Derek rolled his eyes, "I know how to microwave leftover chicken, Casey." He scoffed as he began to heat it and Casey continued to scrub. Thirty seconds into the heating and something popped really loud, "Umm…uh-oh."

Casey angrily mocked him in her head; she turned to look and all she saw was chicken splattered all over the microwave and the counter it was on. She took a deep breath and tried to calm down, "Derek? How the hell did that happen?" she questioned as calmly as she could. Casey could hardly ever get as angry as she should because she expected things like this to happen when he was around.

"Umm…I don't know. I was heating it and the next thing I know was Kaboom! I guess the skin sealed everything in?" he offered with an apologetic smile. Casey left the room, "Casey? Case? Where ya going?" she came back with a whole new roll of paper towel and more cleaning products. Casey shoved it in his chest, "Hey!"

"You're going to clean all this up." She demanded, "You're not leaving until all that is squeaky clean just like _I _had it."

Derek rolled his eyes, "Great, _now_ you choose not to kick me out of the apartment."

"Get cleaning," she demanded.

"Stupid chicken!" he groaned out.

--

"Case?" he whispered. "Casey?" Derek looked down at her as her face was covered with the textbook. She wasn't answering and he heard a bit of a snore so he knew she was knocked out. He was tempting to read about these Interspectacular Personalities or whatever the hell she was studying. He quietly took the textbook off her face; he noticed a few drool marks so he wiped it on Casey's couch. "Let's see. Let's see…" he scanned over the book, "Interspec—whoa-ho-ho, Casey," he smirked at the sleeping girl, "Psychosexual Development…" he read on and started laughing.

Casey awoke to the sound of giggling coming from the area around her feet. "Derek?" he looked over at her and started to laugh, "What are you doing?"

"Reading your Psychiatry stuff," she rolled her eyes, "It's quite interesting if I say so myself. You know these Human Sexual behaviors…" Casey's eyes grew wide with embarrassment, "…libidos…sex drives…" he got closer to her face and whispered, "Penis envy…"

She brought her hand to his forehead and pushed him back with force as her cheeks turned a slight red color, "Wh-why are you reading that?" she stammered.

He let out a smirk that she would actually be able to see, "Why am _I_ reading it? You were the one that was reading it before you slept." He closed the book and got closer to her, "So, you know, since it was the last thing on your mind before you slept," he shrugged; smirk still intact, "did you have any dreams about us and our 'Psychosexual Development'?"

Casey took a deep breath and plastered a sarcastic smile for him, "Yeah, Derek. I had dreams about us." His face grew bright "I had dreams that involved your pants down," he instantly grinned, "and…" she got closer to his ear and whispered, "a machete." Then she got had the thought in her head, "Wait, nope never mind. Machete is giving you_ way_ too much credit down there. It was a pair of scissors."

Grin dissolved into a frown as she pulled back in hysterics, "Hey! You had it right the first time!"

She shook her head at him as she tried to settle her laughter, "What time is it anyway?"

Derek checked his cell-phone and wrinkled his nose, "It's only 7. Man I come over here too early."

Casey rolled her eyes, "How about you come over never?" she expressed with sweet sarcasm.

He smiled brightly at her, "No can do, Wife." Casey threw him a glare as she got up to walk toward her room. He got up and followed her; she was nowhere to be found, "Case?"

"Why are you still here?!" she yelled from her closet. "Can't you ever just leave me alone!" she cried out.

Derek took a seat at her dresser and laughed, "I can't! Because we are having Happy Spouse Time! We need our happy spouse time, Case. That means I must be around you at all times!" he joked and he swore he heard her let out a frustrated scream. He was messing with the things on her dresser and he saw in the reflection of the mirror was Casey all dressed up. He turned around to look at her, "Where are you going?" he furrowed his eyebrows.

"I'm going out wit—did I just see you holding my earrings up to your ears?" she raised a suspicious eyebrow.

He let out a nervous laugh, "Pssh. No." Changing the subject, "So where are you going and why wasn't I aware of these plans?"

"Gina and I are going out for drinks and secondly I don't owe _you_ any explanations." She threw him a fake smile as she put her flats on.

"So drinks, huh?" he said a bit worried, "I don't want you going out there and getting into another marriage, Casey. You know, you don't want to be known as the serial…" he tried to think of something witty, "…drunken…" he face was scrunched up as he thought too hard.

Casey just blinked at him, "Don't hurt yourself." She went over to him and grabbed him by the wrist to pull him up. "So you should get going now." She dragged him to her front door and shoved him out, "Bye De--"

"Serial drunken marrying lady!" he yelled out in excitement as if he's solved the world biggest puzzle. Casey shook her head in embarrassment and quickly shut the door. Derek pulled his phone out and dialed, "Hey Sam we're go--Of course it's Derek, you idiot! Anyways we're going out."

* * *

**These two fighting over little baby alcohol bottles...lol **

**Machetes and scissors**

**You know what to do :)**


	6. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night

**AN: Prettty long chapter but hey that can be good sometimes... **

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned. Especially the song lol**

* * *

"So how are things with the hubby?" asked grinning Gina as she swirled her straw in her Sea Breeze. Immediately Gina could see that same annoyed expression that made its way onto Casey's face at the mention of her husband, "I don't know why you complain…you know I'm going to ask."

Casey rolled her eyes and sighed as she took a sip of her little martini, "Same old, same old. Annoying me until my brain explodes for the day. Yeah, story of my life."

Gina sat back and crossed her arms as her eyebrow raised up, "I mean, you two _have_ been spending a lot of time together. It's been what," she shrugged, "two months straight and all Derek does is go over to your place."

Casey rolled her eyes once more at her friend's accusations. It was time to turn it around on her; Derek taught her that trick, "Derek says it's because you and Sam keep being gross around the apartment."

"Pssh," Gina scoffed in her defense, "Sam and I are hardly gross. Especially around Derek because all he does is tease us! Then, don't tell anyone this," Casey nodded her head slowly to have her continue, "but Sam get's all sensitive about it. That's why we hardly kiss in front of people. Derek constantly mentions his stupid no PDA rule." Gina admitted while Casey bit her lip to contain her laughter. She couldn't hold it any longer, "Why are you laughing, Casey?" Gina frowned.

Casey settled down to a weak chuckle, "Typical Derek. He's been that way for as long as I known him. And seriously why is Sam like a girl when Derek's around? Not even Derek hurts my feelings!" Then Casey darted back to old memories and her face scrunched up in agony, "Well, at least not anymore he doesn't."

Time to bring it back full circle, "And why is that, Casey? Why doesn't he hurt your feelings anymore?"

"Why is your boyfriend such a girl?" she battled right back.

Gina nodded slowly in agreement, "That's a good one." Casey grinned as she won that battle with words. "Stupid Sam!" She groaned out, "Stupid Derek too because Sam used to be so romantic and he was never jealous…then," she glared at the thought of Derek, "that damned husband of yours just had to tease him all the time."

Casey sighed, "Well that's good old Derek Venturi for you." She then arched her eyebrows at two guys walking into the lounge, "Who the hell wears sunglasses at night? Like seriously…"

Gina turned her head to look at the weird men and let out a pathetic laugh, "Well it's just like the song…"

"I wear my sunglasses at night…" they sang in unison and busted out into laughter. "We are so lame." Casey joked.

Gina scoffed, "Speak for yourself, I happen to think that song is classic."

"Of course you would. Emily would too. You two are one in the same. How I'm friends with you two twins beats me." Casey put out in joke disappointment.

"Damn straight Emily and I are the same." She announced with pride, "I mean if that little lazy ass was out with us tonight then I'd have someone to help me tease you about your husband." Her face beamed at the words.

Casey groaned as the conversation was always becoming about Derek, "For the last time! I don't like De--"

"We have an Apple Martini, which that gentleman over there bought for you." He pointed over to the guy near the bar that was smiling at Casey. "Enjoy."

Casey stared at the guy and saw how cute he was. This was the first time in a long time that she got attention from guys other than Derek Venturi. She knew that was how sad her life was becoming in the social scene. Casey offered him a smile back and looked at Gina. "Gina that cute guy is totally eyeing me!" She fixed her eyes back at "Cute Guy" then looked back at Gina once more for some sort of approval.

Gina smirked to herself. She thought she could play off of this and find out something to her advantage. "Go ahead, Casey. Go talk to Cute Guy."

Casey was a bit hesitant, "Am I even allowed to do that?" Cute Guy was walking toward their table, "Oh my God! Gina, he's coming over here! Am I allowed to do this?! Isn't this illegal?!" she was having one of her Casey freak-outs.

Gina shook her head at how Casey can go through a rollercoaster of emotions within minutes, "Casey, it's not illegal. He bought you a drink and it's only fair that you thank him for it. That's all." Gina shrugged, "I mean or else I'll only assume that you don't want to talk to him because of De--" Casey brought the palm of her hand to cover Gina's mouth; a mouth that was about say the name of the guy she was trying to get some distance from.

"Don't say it, okay?" Casey begged.

Gina laughed as Cute Guy came closer, "Well, Sweetie, you better prove me wrong because he's almost here."

Casey sat up straight and he came over. "Hey, ladies."

Both girls gave him smiled, "Hi." "Hello." Gina pulled a seat for him to join them at the table.

"So…" he looked over at Casey and smiled.

Gina looked between them and shook her head with a slight laugh, "I'll leave you two to get to know one another. I'm gonna go order another drink; plus I gotta use the bathroom anyway. Nice to meet you CG," she got off her stool and left them alone.

"CG?" he raised an eager eyebrow but nonetheless interested in knowing.

Casey blushed with the embarrassment that Gina left her to deal with alone, "Cute Guy."

The next thing Casey saw was a smirk form on her lips and immediately the first thing that came to mind was Derek. "Uh-huh, so you think I'm cute then?"

Casey blushed and let out a nervous laugh, "Actually, yeah, I think you're pretty cute." She lifted up the drink slightly to show him, "And thank you for the drink by the way."

"Not a problem." He sat back and threw his arms out as he were reenacting his earlier actions, "I saw you and thought 'wow she was beautiful'. Had to buy you a drink."

Casey couldn't help but smile at the compliment she just got. It was pretty cheesy but all she could think was why not? "Well aren't you quite the charmer."

He smirked again, "That and a lot more." He brought out his hand, "I'm Jeremie."

"Casey." She shook his hand, "Nice to meet you."

"You too, so you go to U of T?"

"Yup," she sighed, "almost time to graduate."

"Same in Cinema Studies."

"Just like my hub—step-brother." Mental slap for Casey, "That's his major while he plays hockey on the side." Casey seriously just wanted to take her drink and pour it on herself as she once again thought about Derek, not to mention the fact that she actually spoke up about him.

"That's cool. Well since, you know," he shrugged, "we go to the same school…"

"…hopefully I'll see you around more?" she finished for him.

He curved his lips to a slight grin, "So you asking me out then?"

--

Gina went up to the bar to order, "Can I get another Sea Breeze please?" She sat and rummaged through her bag for some cash, "Where the hell is my money?!" she dug through some more.

"Sea Breeze," the bartender put out right in front of her.

Gina panicked so her first instinct was to use her charm and her smirk, "I kinda forgot my money," she pursed her lips and shrugged, "Would the handsome and extremely talented bartender help a little lady out?"

He was hesitant but saw her give him a pout, "Ah, sure." Gina beamed. "This one's on the house."

Gina reached up and pinched his cheeks, "You are _the_ best bartender EVER!" he blushed, "Thanks Sweetheart!" She immediately got up and shuddered at the things she has to do to get free stuff around here. She dropped her drink off over at Casey's table where the two were in deep silence, "Don't mind me. I'm just dropping my drink off. Stay cute guys." Gina happily made her way to the bathroom when someone pulled her inside, "AH!" a mumbled scream.

--

Casey blushed with nervousness and he put a hand on hers to calm her of her worries, "It's okay, I'm just messing with you. How about if I…" he shrugged with a slight smile, "take you out to dinner?" he offered her.

Casey decided to throw him that same grin he gave her, "So _you_ asking me out then?" she mocked him.

He chuckled at her, "Touché."

She giggled and nodded, "Sure. I'd love to go out to dinner with you."

"Then it's a date." He announced proudly.

Casey blushed again as a tiny giggle escaped her lips. She was excited for something new to actually happen to her so she needed to tell Gina, who was already in the bathroom so that made it perfect. "Would you excuse me please?" he nodded along and she got off her chair and headed toward the bathroom. She caught sight of one of the sunglasses guys, "Lame ass," she muttered to herself. She got into the bathroom and didn't see Gina. Immediately she heard giggles and moans coming from one of the stalls, "Disgusting."

Casey went over to the sinks and checked her make-up all she heard was, "Babe…" she heard more giggling.

She furrowed her eyebrows and turned her head and glanced at the bottom of the stall and she noticed those shoes anywhere, "Gina?!"

"Cas-Casey—get off!" she breathed, "Yeah, Casey?"

"Gina?! What the hell are you doing?!" Casey didn't expect this of Gina; she was kind of angry. Sam was her friend too and for her to do this to him, "Gina, get out of there now!" she could hear the ruffling of clothes and it was obvious she had a guest. They opened the door open and out came Gina and Sam, "Sam?!" she looked over at Gina, "You secretly brought Sam with you?!" Casey let out a laugh, "Seriously, Sam, it was just a little night out and you just couldn't let her go out with me for a few hours?"

Sam scoffed at her accusations, "Hey! I didn't _want_ to come here!"

Gina straightened up her clothes, "And I _certainly_ didn't secretly bring him here." She looked over at Sam, "Someone just doesn't trust me…"

"I do!" Sam defended himself.

"Uh-huh…" Casey scoffed and she could see Sam getting worked up, "I'm kidding, _Samantha_." She brought her excited attention back to Gina, "Cute Guy totally asked me out!"

Gina threw Sam a look, "Re-really, Casey?"

Casey didn't catch onto Gina's unwilling look toward her, "Yes! That's why I came in here to talk to you instead I found two disgusting monkeys in a stall. Well I'm gonna go back and talk to him. I need to give him my number!" she rushed out as the two followed her.

On her way back to her table, she bumped into Cute Guy, who was a little livid, "You're married?!"

Casey furrowed her eyebrows and threw her friends a look to which they responded with a shrug, "H-how did you know that?" she focused her attention back on the freaked out guy she just met not too long ago.

"So you are?!" Casey sighed and nodded, "So that creepy sunglasses guy was right?! Oh my God..." he whispered to himself, "That means you're also a Hermaphrodite?!" She could hear the two giggling behind her, "Oh my God." He looked back up at her, "Ew. I'm sorry but I-I…ew." He left darted off and out of the place.

Casey could still hear them laughing behind her so she slowly turned her head to look at them, glared and all. "Who the hell told him that?!" she growled.

Sam and Gina raised their hands in defense, "We didn't!"

"Then who did?!" she snapped. She watched as their eyes darted to the ground and now she caught onto their reluctant nature. She figured out why Sam was here and she remembered him saying he didn't want to come. That only left one person. She scanned the place and finally her eyes darted on the lame ass with the sunglasses on. Her eyes grew small as the glare was even more evil than any time before; the noises she started to make were that of a rabid dog, "Don't tell me…"

"Yep." "Yeah." She heard Sam and Gina from the side of her.

Casey started to breath erratically and it was coming out. Her eyes were red with fury and here it was about to make its way out, "De-REK!!"

- - - -

"_Why are we following them?" Sam asked from the passenger seat, "I mean last time I did something like this Gina almost killed me."_

"_Yeah, but you don't want Gina going and flirting with guys at a lounge this time at night, right?" Derek knew that would get him._

_Sam wrinkled his nose at the thought, "Dammit, she better not be."_

_Derek tried to hold in his laughter, "Exactly, that's why we have to go watch over them."_

_Sam nodded in agreement but suddenly the thought washed over him, "Wait. I know you're not going just for me to watch over Gina…are you going to check on Casey?"_

_Derek scoffed nervously, "Please. No. Casey just happens to be there. I'm just helping you out because you know Gina…that girl is just a flirt." He could hear Sam getting frustrated and Derek knew he was off the hook. _

_They got into the parking lot of the local lounge that the girls went into. Derek opened up the compartments in his car and pulled out two sunglasses. He handed one of them to Sam, "What the hell do I need this for?"_

_Derek shook his head at his slow friend, "We don't want to be seen, you idiot, or else they'd kill us. Casey hurts me enough as it is and I am not asking for a death wish."_

_Sam let out a laugh, "D, you totally are here for Casey aren't you?"_

_Derek glared and decided to give Sam the thought, "Gina flirting with random guys at the bar." Sam's face went red at the thought and Derek just couldn't help but think how easy it is for him to tease Sam. _

_Sam put the sunglasses on, "I just don't understand why we're wearing sunglasses at night. Who the hell does that?"_

"_The people who wrote that song about it?" he offered. _

_Sam let out a laugh, "Gina loves that song." Derek nodded a sarcastic nod toward his friend's excitement. They grabbed two beanies and went into the place where they immediately saw Gina and Casey making some crude comments about their appearance. They quickly got a booth where they had clear view of the girls. They sat there for a few minutes and watched as the girls were just laughing and talking. Sam groaned in annoyance, "They're just talking, D. What's the point?"_

_Derek was getting really annoyed with his chatty best friend, "Sam, of course the flirtatious nature of your girlfriend isn't going to happen yet. They just got here!"He watched intently as the waiter brought a drink over to Casey. Then he saw her look over and smile at the guy at the bar and at the instant Derek sat up and felt a feeling of infuriation. "Who the hell is that douche?" Derek muttered aloud to himself. _

"_Hm," Sam thought, "It looks like he bought Casey a drink."_

_Derek turned his head and glared at his friend, "I can see that, Sam." He turned his attention back onto Casey and the guy. He watched as the Casey and Gina were being all girly about him, who was now approaching their table. "What the hell is he doing?"_

"_He's goi--" Derek groaned and Sam knew to stop. _

_Gina got left the table to go to the bar, "Dammit, Gina, you're not supposed to leave her alone with the douche." Derek spoke aloud to himself once more. Derek saw Casey blushing, smiling, even laughing with him and it wasn't making him happy inside._

"_What the hell?!" Sam yelped and Derek looked over at his line of vision. They saw Gina pinching the bartender's cheeks. "See always. She always does this!" Sam saw her as she was about to head to the back area so he quickly got up and went into that direction before she did. He needed to have a chat with his girlfriend. _

_Derek let out a laugh and shook his head. He knew what Sam was going to do back near the bathroom, "Gross." He brought his attention back on his wife and the guy _she_ was flirting with. He watched as the douche put his hands on Casey's and immediately Derek found his hands balling into fists. "Not seeing any guys my ass." He muttered and he could see Casey nodding as if she agreed to a date and he had a feeling she did agree to one. "This is _not_ happening right now." He couldn't even think straight; there was no way he could even ask himself why he was feeling the way he was. _

_He watched as Casey left the table and passed him. "Lame ass" was what he heard and he rolled his eyes. Derek turned his head and checked if she was still in sight; she wasn't. This was his chance to do something about this Douche and the next thing he found himself doing was walking up to Casey's table to have a talk with this guy. _

"_Do I know you?" Douche raised an eyebrow. _

"_I need to warn you about the girl you were talking to."_

_Eyebrow still raised, "Warning me why?"_

"_There's something you need to know about her," Derek whispered, "And trust me…it's a _real_ deal breaker."_

_Douche sat up straighter, "Wh-what?"_

"_She's married, man. Yeah, and her husband…phew…I've seen him and that guy is built!" Derek tried to hide the smirk that was letting itself show on his lips, "He'd kill you."_

_Douche let out a smug laugh, "I'm really supposed to believe a creepy guy like you?"_

_Derek felt his hand clenching into fists and decided to try something else, "If you don't believe me just ask her. She'll tell you. She does not lie." He could see Douche get a little more convinced and Derek was tempted to make it even more fun for Casey, "Not only that man…" Derek got closer and whispered, "She's a Herm."_

_He arched his eyebrows, "What the hell is that?"_

"_A hermaphrodite…you know, she has both male _and_ female reproductive parts." Derek saw his face turn pale, "Yup," Derek nodded, "Yeah. Trust me…I had to find out the hard way!"_

"_Holy Hell, dude, I just asked her out on a date too!"_

_Derek threw him a sympathetic nod, "Yeah, man. You should be lucky I told you. I went out with her and I had to find out myself. No one told me and trust me I wish someone had told me."_

_He wrinkled his nose, "But she just doesn't look like--"_

"_I know. I know. She's gorgeous…but down there ain't too pretty." He watched as Douche ran a nervous hand through his hair, "So you know, ask her if she's married and if she says yes then you'll know that I'm not lying about the herm thing." Derek took a closer look at him and realized he was in a few of his media classes and he thought this was even better, "You should do everyone a solid and warn people around school. Spread the word." He nodded and Derek could see Casey, Sam, and Gina coming out of the bathroom, "She's coming out. Go ask her."_

"_Alright." He got out of the chair and went over to Casey. Derek sneakily made his way back to his table to watch everything go down. From where he was sitting he could see from the look on that guys face that Casey admitted it; from the laughing that Sam and Gina were sharing he could tell the Douche mentioned the Herm lie. "Classic." _

_Then the terror fell upon him and he could laugh no more as Casey's fury filled eyes made its way over in his direction. Scary Casey was back again. "De-REK!" was what he heard._

_- - - -  
_

"Oh shit." Derek murmured in terror. He saw Casey marching over to him and the next thing he felt was his ear being pulled on. Hard. "Ow! Ow! Ow!" he let out as she dragged him outside the place. "Casey let go please!" he begged.

She let go and crossed her arms at him; glare still heating fire through his skin, "I really can't believe you just did what you did, Derek." Casey let out as calmly as she could but Derek knew she was really pissed at him, "You've done some pretty cruddy things to me before but seriously, what the hell were you thinking?"

Derek rubbed his ear as he stared at her through the dark of his sunglasses, "I don't know," he simply let out.

She shook her head and threw him a bitter laugh, "You don't know? You don't know?! You came here. You and Sam came here and kept an eye on me and Gina! Then for some stupid ass reason you went and sabotaged a date I had with that guy!" he was quiet, "YOU CALLED ME A HERMAPRODITE!" she yelled and the people in the vicinity stopped and stared. "I'm not a hermaphrodite," Casey laughed nervously to assure them and made her way back to a tight lip laughing Derek. Casey angrily yanked the sunglasses off his face and threw them on the ground, "Who the hell wears sunglasses at night?!" he wrinkled his nose at her because he happened to like those sunglasses. "Derek," she groaned, "why do you do these things?!" He opened up his mouth to speak and Casey knew what he was going to say, "I swear, Derek, if you answer me with an 'I don't know…"

"…you'll strangle me to my demise." He finished for her.

"Damn straight." She muttered. "So seriously what in the world were you thinking by coming here and ruining my night?"

Derek rolled his eyes and sighed, "I was just trying to make sure you don't go and get drunk again. That's all."

She shook her head not believing a word out of his mouth, "I wasn't getting drunk, you dolt, I literally had like two girly drinks." Casey was quiet and decided to quietly let out, "I only drink hard when I'm with you apparently."

Derek immediately grinned, "Yeah, you do…"

She saw him start to chuckle at the thought so she smacked him upside the head to shake him out of his thoughts. "None of this is funny!"

He tried to contain his laughter, "I know, I know. It's not funny."

Casey sighed and decided to just ask him seriously, "Are you jealous or something, Derek?"

Derek immediately arched his eyebrows at her and his laughter subsided in an instant, "What the hell do I have to be jealous for?" He was a bit offended, "Casey, you must be losing it because never in a lifetime would I get jealous over something related to you."

She stifled a laugh, "_Really_?" he nodded rapidly to convince her and she wasn't having it, "So you just sabotage dates for no apparent reason?" He didn't answer instead he just stood there and looked down, "Derek!"

"What?!" he yelled.

Casey was getting frustrated with the lack of communication she was receiving. It was like talking to that little kid who knew he did wrong but won't admit it, "So what? Am I never going to be allowed to go on dates? Am I going to have to find you waiting around every time a guy even speaks to me?" Derek couldn't help but laugh because if that guy was going to spread the word no one at school would even think about asking her out. "STOP LAUGHING!"

"I'm sorry!" he settled down.

Casey ran a hand through her hair, "Derek, why are you so angry about me talking to other guys?" she said as calm as she could.

He felt himself in a need to give her glare, "Do you see _me_ going out with other girls?" Derek felt stupid at that very moment for even letting those words come out his mouth.

She shook her head and was getting extremely annoyed but seriously what's new? "No one is stopping you, Derek. What does it even matter if I go out with other guys and you go out with other girls? We," she motioned a hand between them, "aren't even _in_ a relationship!!" she screamed in frustration.

"Exactly!" he snapped at her and her eyes grew wide at his words. Derek saw Casey's face discolor to white and immediately he realized what came out of his mouth. "Exactly…" he quieted down and needed to turn it around, "Exactly, Casey, we're not in a relationship so there's no excuse for why I did what I did."

Casey watched him and she wasn't stupid. She knew exactly what he just did in trying to cover up what he originally meant but it was something she didn't know how to deal with and it was something she _wasn't_ going to deal with. "Yeah, there really wasn't, Derek."

He simply nodded. Derek was never one for these types of talks and right now he wasn't ready to go any further in explaining himself, "Casey, I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to ruin your night…I don't know what came over me." He let a small laugh escape his lips and Casey raised an eyebrow, "I think we need marriage counseling." Immediately he saw Casey share his laugh and he knew they were okay, "So are you still pissed at me?"

Casey shrugged, "I'll always be pissed at you. I'll never _ever _understand why you do the things you do…"

"But somehow you still deal with me?" he beamed as he finished with a slight hint of questioning.

Casey rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah." She looked at him and saw the small tight lipped grin he had. It was apparently okay to be on joking terms again, "Derek Venturi, if you _ever_ do _anything_ like this again…"

Derek small grin became a smirk, "You'll get that machete you told me about when you dreamt about my pants being down."

She smacked his shoulder to which he laughed, "It was scissors, you dummy." Shaking her head as she breathed out a laugh to share with him, "Well, it's getting late and it's been a long day…"

Derek rubbed the back of his and shrugged, "Do you need a ride home? Sam can just ride with Gina…"

Casey nodded, "Sure."

--

"See, Baby, I swear Derek knows how to push her buttons and calm her down in the matter of minutes…" Gina inquired as she and Sam watched their married friends from the window. "He completes her," she sighed in happiness.

Sam let out a laugh, "You're totally going to call Emily and tell her this aren't you?"

Gina scoffed, "Hell yeah! Derek totally likes her and Casey's still a little dense in that smart mind of hers."

"Ironic."

"Totally…"

--

"Studying again, Case?" he quipped from the right of her.

Casey glared at him as she sat on the couch with her books in her lap, "Not leaving my apartment again, _Derek_?" she battled back.

"Well played." He nodded with a grin.

She sighed as she opened up her books to get lost in the world of her education. "Since you ruined my _night_…" he frowned, "I might as well just finish studying." She could see his lips about to give her something witty, "Don't make fun of me."

"I didn't even say anything!" he defended himself.

"Mhmm…" she murmured as she flipped through the pages, tapping lightly the highlighter on the paper. Derek glanced over at her as she groaned to herself, running her hand through the front of her hair. "Why…" she muttered quietly to herself.

He raised an eyebrow, "Why what?"

She scanned each line as the highlighter followed thereafter, "Why can't I focus. I went over these same chapters and it's like I don't remember any of it." Casey gave herself a pathetic laugh, "I might even fail…" she started breathing erratically as she thought about it. "I didn't work this hard to fail. No, I didn't."

Derek instantly felt guilty. Yeah, Derek Venturi felt guilty for the first time in his life. Well maybe not the first time…first time was with that soccer coach years ago. Ironically that had to deal with Casey too. She was making him do all sorts of things he never really did and yet again there was no explanation for it. First it was his need to watch over her and make sure guys wouldn't touch her. Then the fact he felt guilty for always being around to bother her that she never got her studying done, "Hey, do you want me to," he shrugged, "give you some space for a while?"

Casey furrowed her eyebrows, "Why?" she let out a laugh, "I know I always tell you to go away and leave me alone but I didn't think you'd actually take it seriously," immediately after she said that she wonder why she said it. This was Derek asking to give her space and she was questioning it? Derek was making her do all sorts of things she never really did and she, too, had no explanation for it.

He shrugged, "So you could actually get some studying done? I know it's me that's always distracting you and I apologize for that because I know how important finals and graduation are to you blah blah… so I'm willing to set aside our happy spouse time for your study time."

Casey smiled and here was a side of Derek she didn't see too often. Well she didn't see at all. This was a different Derek, "Really?" he nodded, "I mean on most days," she groaned, "minus tonight when you were the biggest prick I know," he frowned "I do have a blast with you and I know I just admitted it. Don't get all cocky on me." Frown to a grin, "It'll just be two months. Finals will be over in two months. It'll even give you time to focus on your finals." She became serious for a minute, "And you better focus on your finals."

Derek snorted, "Sure."

Casey chuckled and put a hand on his, "Just give me two months, Derek, and we can have fun. I'll get all this stuff over with and pressure will be off me."

He nodded, "Yeah, sure."

Without thinking she threw herself to give Derek a hug, "Thanks, Derek."

Derek didn't know how to react. He never hugged Casey on a serious level like this. He found himself wanting to bring his arms up and reciprocate the hug but his arms stayed put. "No problem, Case. I don't want you to become a shitty psychiatrist."

Her groan came out, "Psychologist, Derek!"

Derek let out a laugh, "Sorry, physiologist." Casey shook her head and brought her hands up and put them on either side of Derek's face; he blushed and eyes grew wide, "Wh-whatcha doin there, Case?" She got closer and turned his head slightly to the side and gave him a kiss on the cheek. When she pulled back Derek let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

She looked him straight in the eyes, "Really, Derek. This means a lot."

He nodded and had a slight grin to turn off this mushy crap, "Well you got two months to get your act together because that's as long as I can hold off on not bothering my wife." They both shared a laugh and he made his way toward her door, "Alright, Casey. Don't cry too much. I know you'll miss me."

"Shut up and get out of here," she joked.

"I'm going. I'm going."

Casey leaned her head on the door, "Really, Derek. Thanks."

He jokingly wrinkled his nose at her, "Stop! Please! You're making everything a mushy moment!" she gave him a girly punch on the shoulder. "Bye, Wife."

"Bye, Hubby."

Derek was walking away from her building and he found himself touching the spot Casey kissed. It was still tingling and it made Derek feel all sorts of weird. But it was a good kind of weird.

--

Casey made her way to her room to get in comfortable study mode. It was quiet and it was time to concentrate. The thought was still there and she couldn't help but stifle a laugh, "That son of a bitch called me a hermaphrodite. He out of all people should know I am _not_ a hermaphrodite."

* * *

**Derek's being sweet...I guess its a progression of his change in character..that can be good, right? lol **

**So how will two months be for our married two-some? shrugs**

_editor-in-chief: mah cousin! thanks for fixing typos!_


	7. Admitting, Missing, Dinner, and DRock!

**AN: Dasey feelings. **

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything. **

* * *

It had been the most miserable two months that Derek had experienced in a long time. There were plenty of times when he'd have a terrible month. An example of this would be those two seasons where they lost their championship in the final round of the playoffs. Yeah, those were terrible months. But these two months…they felt much worse than any losing of a championship. He told Casey he'd give her space and he did just that and he felt horrible while doing it. No going over to her apartment to bother her or even sending her crude text messages that he knew would make her annoyed. He would just brood silently in his room on most days. There were times when he'd wake up in the mornings and find himself thinking he'd head over to Casey's but then he realized month number five wasn't quite there yet.

He'd sit and have breakfasts with Sam and Gina and in most cases he'd find himself tuning out. Deep down he'd rather have breakfast at a diner with Casey. Other days he'd be in his room looking over some study sheets that he knew he would need to review for finals, but he just didn't feel like it. All he could think about was Casey. Casey Venturi: his wife, his step-sister. Ever since that night he left her house, all he could think about was her and that cute little kiss she gave him. And he still had no explanation for why it was all he could think about.

For most of the years he's known her, he'd want nothing better than to not see her for two months. On good days he'd wish he didn't have to see her for years. Now here he was at 21 years of age and she was all he could think about. And on a good day he'd be able to spend time with her. He knew they were supposed to be in a marital "separation" but he didn't feel like he wanted spend time apart from her. Maybe that's the reason why he was always over her house. There was still a week left of finals and he knew it'd be a week left before he could go hang out with her again.

"Derek?" he could hear Gina calling from in front of him. She waved a hand in front of his face to get his attention, "Derek?" he was still off in his own world.

"D!" Sam yelled and finally Derek was shaken out of his thoughts.

"What?!" he was startled.

"What the hell is up with you, man? You've been zoning out a lot lately. We're kinda worried about you…"

Derek arched his eyebrows and laughed at the two worried faces, "I'm okay. I'm not dead or anything, jeez. Calm yourselves."

"It's just I haven't seen you this bummed in…" Sam thought for a second, "forever!" Derek shook his head and laughed some more.

Gina pointed her finger at Derek, "I know exactly what's bothering him." She nodded, "Yup, I know exactly what it is."

Derek sat up and got nervous all of a sudden. He was afraid he was going to be ambushed with teasing about how his step-sister slash wife is taking up space in his mind. "And what would _that_ be?"

"You are freaking out about your finals too. Just like Sam." Gina pinched Sam's cheeks, "Yeah, my baby's been stressing."

Derek wrinkled his nose at them, "Ew and sure?" he lied.

Gina was proud of herself, "See I knew it. I am such a mind reader." Derek laughed in his head as he took a sip of his coffee, "I mean it was either that or Casey." Derek spit out his coffee and it got all over Sam and Gina. "DEREK!" Gina screamed. Derek quickly got up and grabbed some napkins to help clean up. He sat back down and watched them nervously as he finished his coffee. Finally he saw the look Gina gave him. A look that showed Gina's new revelations; that sort of grin that she tried to hide but it was obviously there, "It is Casey, isn't it Derek?"

Derek blushed with embarrassment but tried his hardest to cover it up, "Pshh…no." He brought his mug to his mouth again and was tempted to ask, "So… how is she anyway?" he mumbled from behind his coffee.

Gina threw Sam a look. Derek could tell it was one of those looks where Gina and Sam had some sort of a secret knowing or something. It made him a bit nervous. Finally she focused her eyes back on Derek, "She's okay, Derek."

Derek thought that was a bit weird of an answer. He noticed that Gina wasn't very convincing so he furrowed his eyebrows at her, "She's _just_ okay?" Gina simply nodded toward him and Derek knew that was all he was going to get out of her. He cleared his throat, "So has she…" he shrugged, "mentioned me at all?" He sat up in hopes that he wasn't too obvious in his desperation to know, "I mean I'm_ just_ asking."

Unfortunately for him he _was_ too obvious. Sam and Gina just stared at him like he was crazy and it was making Derek start to actual become crazy. "D, are you…"

"…starting to actually…" Gina face grew bright.

Derek buried his head in his hands, "…like Casey." He finished for them.

Gina literally shrieked in excitement. Sam and Derek had to cover their ears. She got up and ran over to Derek and gave him a kiss on the head, "I knew this would happen! I knew it! See mind reader!" she looked over at Sam, "Baby! You owe me moneyyyyyy!" she sang. Derek furrowed his eyebrows at his friends, "Yeah, Derek. Emily and I bet Sam that you two would have feelings for one another and then you'd stay married!"

All of this was too much to take at once and now he was regretting the fact that he admitted what he did. He stood up and put his hands on the table. He focused his attention on both of them, "Okay, first of all I just said I like Casey. There are hardly any feelings stronger than that. Second of all, Casey probably feels nothing and we still have a little more than 7 months left in this marriage. You can't just say we're going to stay married." He groaned, "This is too much. Forget I even said anything." He began to walk toward his room, "Sammy can keep his money because you girls haven't won anything yet!" he yelled out.

Gina frowned and dropped back in her chair as if she's failed a mission. She put her chin in her hand, "Dammit."

Sam rubbed her back, "Baby, it's okay. I'll give you some money if you need it."

Gina sighed, "It's not that…it's just Derek and Casey…"

"Well you heard Derek." Sam slightly laughed at his best friends actions, "He's probably going to un-like his like for her now…that stubborn ass. We don't even know if Casey likes him…"

Gina hummed in thought, "Hmm…well she's been miserable like Derek has been. That only means that…"

"She likes him too?" Sam solved the puzzle.

Gina turned and gave him a quick peck, "You, baby, are right on target." She ran her hands in his hair and smiled innocently, "You can buy me and Emily dinner tonight?"

"Only if I come…" he proposed.

"Because you don't trust me again?" she raised an eyebrow.

"No." He defended himself, "I'm just hungry too."

Gina pretended to be upset, "Fine," she sighed. Sam immediately picked her up and ran into the room as she shrieked.

--

Casey _has_ been miserable for those last two months. If someone told her years ago that she had to be avoiding Derek for two months straight, she would have jumped up and down for joy. But sadly, no, she hasn't been that great. Yeah, sure she finally got back onto par with her studying and she did fantastic on two of her finals, but something was missing during those two months and she knew who it was. Her husband; her step-brother; the annoying migraine, was what was gone and she just simply missed it.

"Casey, you wanna come out to dinner with Gina and me?" Emily asked as she painted her toe nails in Casey's room.

Casey was lying flat on her stomach as she studied on her bed; her chin resting in her hand as she flipped through the pages of her textbook, "I don't know…" she sighed.

Emily wiggled her toes and scooted closer to the bed from Casey's computer chair, "Why are you trapping yourself in your home?! You haven't been out in forever. I mean, yeah, you've been studying and you got like two more finals but come on and take a break. Come out to dinner. It's just us girls. No Sam. No Derek." Casey frowned and flipped through her book once more, "Casey!" Emily screamed for her to pay attention.

Casey finally looked up at her, "What?"

"Dinner? Tonight? Girls?" Emily spoke rapidly. Casey shrugged, "Casey, what is wrong with you? Is it Derek?"

Casey immediately snorted, "Pshh…no!" she blushed and stared back down at her textbook, "Psychological Disorders…" she read aloud to help change the subject. Emily wasn't going to back down that easy; she abruptly shut Casey's textbook, "Hey!" Casey complained, "I was reading that!"

"No, Casey. No you weren't." Casey brought her chin in her hand as she stared at her intuitive friend. "You miss Derek don't you?" Casey shrugged and it caused Emily to groan out loud, "Casey! Just tell me. I won't tell anyone…" she got quiet, "…except for Gina," she finished quickly.

Casey sat up to be leveled with Emily, "I'm fine!" she assured her not even quite sure she meant it, "It's just school and finals. You know how I get."

Emily shook her head and threw her a pathetic laugh, "I know _exactly_ how you get. You love school and you _love_ finals. You can't wait for that time and you have a blast studying…" Emily almost felt sorry for the girl, "it's sad really. And this…" she motioned Casey's entire body; her slouching; her unhappy attitude; her negative feel for things, "this is not you. This isn't normal and I know exactly how you get over boys. Yeah, I remember. Sam, Max, Noel…" Emily raised an eyebrow in thought, "Has there even been anyone else?" Casey embarrassed enough as it is shook her head no. Emily shrugged, "So…come on Casey. You like Derek, don't you? Just admit it." She grinned, "Admit it…" it was all sing-song now.

Casey was apple red with blush at this moment. She didn't know if she liked Derek that way but she felt something toward her husband. She merely shrugged, "I miss him. That's all."

Emily smiled brightly at her dense friend, "Aww… you miss your husband."

Casey finally was able to let out a smile, "Yeah, I do." Deep down it actually felt good to admit something she'd been hiding for the last two months. It was a breath of fresh _air_ to let it out that she missed him, "Yeah. I miss Derek and that little bastard better be missing me too."

"There's the Casey I know." Emily excitedly expressed, "That happy Casey that beams bright at the end of spring semester…yeah! See. Doesn't it just feel good to let it out?" Casey nodded because it _did_ feel good; exhilarating even. She hadn't felt this good since the last time she saw Derek. "So dinner? Us girls?"

Casey nodded, "Sure."

--

Derek sat comfortably in his beloved recliner while he flipped through the channels on his TV. He just kept thinking about Gina's accusations earlier and all he could think about was how badly he wished he didn't tell them he liked her. He felt like he was in playing stupid childish games and he was embarrassed for it. But deep down he wouldn't pretend like he didn't feel _something_ toward Casey because he does and he feels some sort of peace in admitting it. He missed her. A lot actually, he missed her a lot.

"D, you sure you don't want to come with us? I don't want to be the only guy there…" Sam was basically begging him in that subtle sort of way.

Derek rested his chin in the palm of his hand; still flipping through the channels, "Nope. I'll just stay here."

"Are you still mad about earlier? Because Gina said she won't bother you about it anymore."

Derek shook his head and sighed, "I'm not mad. Tell Gin--" Gina came out of her room, "I'm not mad at you Gina."

Gina smiled, "Good. I don't like when you're mad at me and I promise I won't say anything unless you say it first." Derek nodded and then she focused her attention over to Sam, "Baby, let's go because Emily's on her way and Casey's coming along too."

Sam groaned, "Man! Now I have to pay for Casey too?!"

Derek sat up straight, putting his recliner in its upright position, "Casey's going?" Gina nodded. He darted up off his chair, "Uh…I guess I'll go too then." He ran to his room, "Sammy, I guess you'll have to pay for another person!" he called out.

Sam buried his head in his hands and Gina rubbed his back, "Aww…it's okay, baby." She literally heard Sam crying.

--

Gina, Sam, and Derek were already at their table awaiting Emily and Casey. Gina and Sam were yapping next to him and the only thing Derek could think about was Casey. What was Casey going to be like when she saw him? 

Would she be as excited as he was? Or nervous? He _was_ nervous about seeing her and never in his life was he this nervous about a girl.

Finally they came in and Derek felt his stomach feeling all sorts of weird and yet again it was the good kind of weird. He stood up immediately as she walked over to them. He didn't even notice that he was the only one standing; he just felt he had to. Once Casey's eyes locked with his, he felt his palms get all sweaty all of a sudden. Then she smiled and Derek felt his heart beating faster. This wasn't normal and deep down he knew it, but he decided to just ignore it.

Casey made her way over to everyone and gave them their hugs and side pecks. Then she made it to Derek last. She brought herself in his arms and hugged him tight and this time Derek brought his arms around her and reciprocated. "I missed you, Hubby," she stretched out as she hugged him tighter.

"Me too, Wife." They pulled back and they shared a laugh. Derek took his seat and Casey took the one in front of him; the smiles bouncing off and onto one another.

Gina and Emily let out a happy sigh as they watched their married friends. "Gina, isn't this the cutest?" Emily whispered.

Gina looked like she was about cry happy tears, "Yeah, Em. I feel like my life is complete."

Sam shook his head toward them, "You know, this dinner; that I'm paying for, is the money I owe you two for this bet, okay?" he screamed in a whisper. They waved a meaningless hand at him and they continued to watch the two.

"So…how are you?" Derek decided to ask first.

Casey shrugged, "Okay, I guess." Derek smiled to himself. It was just like Gina told him except it seemed as if she was just as miserable as he was. "So how about you?" she let out a laugh, "You must've had a blast being out on your own, huh? No me to take up time in your life…just the Derek Venturi party animal…"

"No Case." He merely shook his head still smiling, "I was just _okay_ too." She couldn't say anything in response but she knew deep down exactly what he meant. All she could give was a smile.

Sam looked at the two girls who had their cell phones out, "What are you guys doing?" he whispered.

"We're taking pictures to capture this fantastic moment." Emily told him quietly as she snapped a picture.

"Yeah," Gina snapped one of her own, "What she said."

--

Derek and Casey got comfortable around one another again as they all ate dinner. It was a good night. Joking and laughter from all over… well until Sam and Gina had their usual fight. It wasn't dinner if Sam and Gina weren't fighting. Derek, Casey, and Emily all sighed as they listened in on their friends.

"Sam, for the last time I wasn't flirting with him!" Gina cried out.

Sam nodded and threw her a pathetic snort, "Yeah, you totally were! He asked if you wanted more water and you were like 'oh, only if _you_ pour it for me'" he mocked her in a girly voice, "that was totally flirting!"

Emily nudged Casey on the shoulder, "Kinda like your birthday dinner, eh?"

Casey shook her head and groaned jokingly, "I don't _want_ to remember."

- - - -

"_Who the hell eats this food?" Derek complained as the sushi roll flew from his awkward chopstick holding, "Animals?"_

"_People eat this food, Derek." Casey rolled her eyes, "Just eat it!"_

_Derek tried again to capture the roll of rice and raw fish in between his chopsticks. He was unsuccessful when it flew onto Casey's dress shirt, "Oops!" he choked out laughter. _

_Casey took a deep breath and tried to calm herself, "Just. Use. Your. Fingers. Please!" _

_Derek looked over at Sam who, too, was having the same issues, "See! I'm not the only one who can't do this, Casey. We shoulda went and got _real_ food."_

"_Ugh!" Casey snapped, "You and Sam were _not_ supposed to be here so shut the hell up and eat your damn sushi! Or better yet…just starve. Please." She cried, "I'm begging you to just starve to death." _

_Sam stared at angry Casey. She glared between his self and Derek, he looked over at his best friend and whispered, "D, just shut up. Don't anger it anymore than it already is." Derek busted out into laughter after Sam referred Casey as an "it"._

_Casey brought her attention over to Sam and it stayed on Sam, "Buddy, you're on thin ice here."_

"_I didn't mean it like that!" Sam cried out. _

_She looked over at a disappointed-in-her-boyfriend Gina, "Gina, please watch your boyfriend before I stick one of these chopsticks up his ass."_

"_Yeah, Sam," Derek cried in laughter._

_Casey turned her head to look at her very chatty secret husband, "I don't know why you're laughing because the second chopstick already has your name on it." Derek stopped laughing and stuffed a sushi roll in his mouth to protect himself from saying anymore to anger it._

_--_

_They saw the waiter come from the back holding her Coconut Crème Brulee. "Casey! Dessert!" Emily nudged her excitedly._

_Casey clapped her hands in anticipation. "Yesssss!"_

_The waiter approached the table, "So who's celebrating a marriage?!" he grinned proudly. The five friends became silent while Casey stared at Derek with wide eyes. The waiter frowned because no one was attempting to claim it. _

"_I was celebrating a birthday?" Casey let out in a bummed manner. _

_He brought his palm to forehead, "Oh, I'm so sorry."_

_Gina decided to work her charm and get Casey this dessert or even a free one. It was her specialty. She had a smirk of her own, "You don't have to apologize…" she red his name tag, "Jimmy. You just had a little mistake. It's okay, cute guy like you can make a million mistakes and never will you have to apologize." He blushed. "What are you like 16?" She grinned, "You are one handsome devil."_

"_I'm 18 actually," he let out nervously, "Why don't I just leave this here and I'll come back and bring you another dessert on the house."_

_Casey offered him a smile, "You don't have to do that."_

_He shook his head, "It's my pleasure, really." He ran to the back. _

_Gina slid the dessert over to Casey, "See," she grinned, "that's how you do it." She looked over at an angry Sam, "What the hell is _wrong_ with you?"_

"_You totally flirted with that guy!" he whined. Derek, Casey, and Emily all groaned to the familiarity that were these fights._

_Gina cried out in frustration, "Yeah, so we could get a free dessert! Baby, I don't like little boys, okay?! I'm not Michael Jackson! Ugh!" she looked over at Casey, "Where's that damned chopstick!" Casey subtly slid it over to Gina. She waved it in Sam's face to threaten him, "Do you seriously want this?!"_

"_No!"_

_Derek, Casey, and Emily just blinked as they watched them. Deadpanned; all had their spoon-filled desserts in their mouths as they watched the entertainment for the night._

_- - - -  
_

Derek laughed as they continued to watch Sam and Gina. "Where's the Crème Brulee when you need it."

Gina slammed her napkin on the table and got up only to smack Derek over the head before storming out. "OW!" he wrinkled his nose, "What is it with you girls and abusing me!"

Sam got up and threw Derek his wallet, "Go ahead and pay, D." He looked at Emily, "Could you drop Derek off later?" Emily nodded and he quickly ran after Gina.

"Gina blames your teasing for why Sam is so jealous all the time." Casey stated.

Derek let out a laugh, "It's not my fault that he's so gullible. Plus Gina is a flirt!" Casey and Gina both nodded in agreement.

Emily sighed, "Those two… how they are still together, I'll never know. Well I'm going to use the bathroom." Emily quickly left the two of them alone and both Derek and Casey knew she left on purpose.

"How obvious was that?" Casey let out a nervous laugh. Derek just smiled at her, "Wh-what?" she smiled back, "Wh-why do you keep looking at me like that."

He rubbed the back of his head and sat back in his chair, "What are you doing after this?"

Casey shrugged, "After here? Umm…nothing just head home and study a little more probably."

"Boooooring." He let out even though he knew it was important to her; he just felt like he needed to spend _some_ time with her. It was two months after all, "You wanna hang out?"

She could tell by the way he was acting that he missed her as much as he did. Casey raised an eyebrow with a slight grin, "You really did miss me, didn't you, Derek? You missed me complaining and bugging you about why you're over. You missed coming over, huh?"

He blushed because he knew it was true, "I did. Okay? I missed my wife!" he joked, "Just like you missed me coming over and bothering you and raiding your fridge."

"Yeah," She nodded while in hysterics, "I did. I really missed my husband."

He smiled and shrugged, "Now do you want to hang out or what?"

Casey settled down and nodded, "Sure."

Emily came back from the bathroom, "You guys wanna head out now? It's not entertaining when our fighting couple runs out on us."

Derek nodded and they paid for the dinner and headed out to Emily's car. "Hey Emily, I'm just gonna go to Derek's and hang out for a bit. You wanna come?" Derek wrinkled his nose because deep down he just wanted to hang out with Casey.

Fortunately for him even Emily knew that. "No, I'll just drop you guys off." She grinned to herself, "I have my own finals to study for."

"Alright." Casey turned her head from the passenger seat to look at Derek, "What are we doing tonight?"

Derek smirked, "I think I have an idea."

--

"Derek! My fingers hurt!!" she cried out, "but I can't stop!"

"It's addicting, huh?!" Derek yelled as he banged his drumsticks on his drums.

Casey felt a rush of intensity flow through her as her fingers alternated the pressing of 5 colored buttons on her guitar, "YES! It's addicting! Where has this been all my life?!" she screeched really loud.

Sam came out of the room and rubbed his eyes as he blankly stared at them. "Jesus Christ, it's 3 in the morning!" Derek and Casey ignored him and kept playing, "What the hell are you guys doing anyway?" He walked over and saw what their current addiction was, "Rock band?!" Sam got excited. "I want in! Casey, hand over that guitar and you get on the mic!"

Casey frowned because she was having her fun with the guitar. They switched positions, "Fine." They got prepared and saw Derek grinning at them, "What?"

"It's like a D-Rock reunion!" The three of them busted out into laughter, "Minus Ralphie."

"Whatever happened to Ralph?" Casey asked with a laugh.

"The last I heard he came out the closet…" Sam told them. There was an awkward silence between the three of them, "Well… let's play!"

"Yeah!"

--

Gina came out of the room rubbing her eyes as she awoke to the loud music and laughter, "What the—hey Casey."

"Hey Gina!" she gave her a shout out on the microphone, "So you two work everything out?"

Gina nodded, "Like always." She looked at her boyfriend fiddling with his toy guitar, "Sam! It's like 5 in the morning!"

"Baby, okay. Okay. Let me finish this last song. It's almost done."

"Yeah, _baby_." Derek mocked him to which he frowned.

"Shut up, Derek." Gina growled.

Casey finished up her Rock Band rendition of Flyleaf's "I'm So Sick."

Sam got up, "Alright guys. I'm beat. Nigh—morning."

"Good morning Mr. and Mrs. Venturi," Gina teased as Derek and Casey glared at her. She giggled and quickly she and Sam went back into their room.

Derek stood up and turned the Xbox off. He rubbed the back of his head and looked at Casey, who stared up at him from the couch, "So…"

"That was fun… "Casey smiled and stood up, "I should definitely swing by here more often and play. This time it'll be me that you wanna get out of your house."

Derek lightly chuckled, "Swing by anytime. You're pretty badass on the guitar and mic."

Casey raised an eyebrow, "Is that your subtle way of asking me to come over more?" Derek looked like he didn't know how to answer that question and she let out a laugh to assure him, "I'm just kidding, Derek."

Derek had an impulse run through him at the moment. He convinced himself to believe that he didn't feel like dropping her off but we all know that isn't the truth, "Uh…Casey?" he shrugged, "You wanna just stay over? I mean it _is_ like 5 in the morning and I could see your eyes are--"

Casey instantly covered his mouth with her hand to stop the idiotic rambling, "Sure." He grinned against her hand which she quickly pulled back and wiped it on her jeans. "Just lead the way."

They went into his room and this was first time she'd been in here. It looked exactly like his room back home. The same bed; the same computer desk; the same vinyl records hanging on the wall and it reminded her of all the times she'd barge in his room when they were younger. "So I guess you can take the bed…"

"Willing to give up your bed for your wife?" Casey joked.

Derek smirked and he knew joking was okay, "Of course. What kind of a husband would I be?"

Casey started to chuckle as she got comfortable in his bed, "Yeah, yeah. So where are you going to sleep?"

Derek couldn't hold it in. He was due for a joke on Casey. It's been a while, "Why? You missed your cuddle buddy? See I told you Saturday nights were good. So you wanna cuddle with me again? 'Cause if that's the case, move ove--"

"No!" she screamed out.

Derek continued to laugh and he got settled on the floor, "Please try and _not_ drool on my pillows."

"I'll make sure I will."

"Gross."

--

Gina took her ear off the door, "Ah-ha…so Casey's staying over, eh?"

"So?"

"So?" Gina she scoffed, "This is a big deal!"

"They are probably just sleeping…" he yawned and got comfortable, "just like we should…so come on."

Gina got into bed and made herself comfortable too, "Sleeping my ass…" she muttered quietly to herself. Next thing she did was grab her cell phone and sent Emily a text. "_Casey's sleeping in Derek's room. Wanna tease her about it_?" sent.

"_Duh! Now leave me alone. I'm trying to sleep!"_

"_Oops. Sorry."_

* * *

**Rock Band equals Love**

**You guys equal Love too. So show me some. lol.**

**Don't worry we'll get back to Marriage flashbacks soon. ;)**


	8. Hurt and Heal, Teasing, Misunderstanding

**AN: Another long chapter. sorry bout that.**

**Quick shoutout to Buddy Beepers...whoot! Happy Graduation Day! Feel short bus special now! YAY!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned. **

* * *

"_We're getting married!!" Casey yelled at the top of her lungs. "I'm getting married!" she grabbed Derek by his shirt collar, "We're getting married, Derek!"_

"_I know! I'm going to married you! I gonna married you!" he pulled her face toward his and gave her a bunch of kisses, "My future wife! Myyyy future wife, evraone!" _

_Casey pinched his cheeks like a baby, "You are so adorable!" she looked around at the people who couldn't give a damn, "He's sooooooo ADORABLE! I'll spelled it for you! A-B-O-R-L-A-D-E! Adorable! PEOPLE!! Seee!" _

_Casey suddenly frowned and Derek pouted, "Why so blue?--" he broke into laughter, "Blue!! Like your hand! Get it Casey?!" Casey busted out into laughter also then frowned again. Derek cupped his fiancée's face, "What's the matter? Why are you sad?! I'll make it alllllllll better! I promise!"_

"_We don't got anyone! I don't has a maid of honor! You don't has a best man!" she complained._

"_Let's call our friends! YEAH! Let's call our friends! I'll called Sam! You called Emily and Gina!" Derek was too excited now._

_Casey felt like jumping up and down with joy, "THAT'S A GREAT IDEA!" She looked around at the crowd of people once more, "My Derek is so SMART! SOOOO Smart!! PEOPLE! That's why I'm marrieding him!"_

_Derek and Casey drunk dialed Sam and Emily's phone. _

"_Sam!" "Emily!"_

"_I needa best man okay?!" "I just want toooo tell you I loveeee you and Gina k?"_

"_I'm getting married!!" "I need both of you to be mys maidsaa honor k?"_

"_Sammy! You hear me?! I'm gonna married Casey!" "I'm getting married, Gimily! Yeah! I'm gon get marrrried!"_

"_Casey is gonna married me! She's mah fiancée!" "I'm gonna be Mrs. Venturi! Yup! Derek wanna marry me too!"_

"_Alright, Sammy?! Hurried up! K?!" "Gimily! You heard me?! I'm gonna go now and get married! Hurry up!"_

_The engaged to be married two-some hung up. Derek got up off his stool and held out his arm for her to latch on, "Come on Case! We gotta get married now!" _

_Casey hopped off the stood and attached herself to Derek, "Give me kisses first!"_

_Derek leaned down and gave her a bunch of kisses to which she smiled brightly at, "Casey?"_

_- - - -  
_

"Casey?" she could hear him whisper. Casey arched her eyebrows and went back to sleep, "Casey…" he let out in a sing-song voice. "Wake up…"

Casey opened her eyes finally and saw him smiling brightly at her, "Oh," she rubbed her eyes and expressed in joke excitement, "I didn't know I'd be waking up to creepy in the morning." He rolled his eyes and pulled the covers off of her, "Derek! I'm still sleepy!"

"And I'm bored! So get up so we can do something!" he sat on the edge of the bed, "Here I made some coffee." He handed her the mug.

Casey sat up and grinned. It was her turn to tease and she was going to take advantage of it. It had been a while after all, "Aww…" she pinched his cheeks, "My Hubby brought me some coffee." She brought the mug to her lips and took a sip, "So what do you want to do today? Because I still got a bunch of last minute studying I gotta do."

"Aw…" he mocked her as he pinched her cheeks right back; she smacked his hand away, "You're willing to take time out of your psycho work to spend time with your husband."

"Kiss my ass, Derek." She muttered from behind her mug.

"Is that an order?" he raised a joking eyebrow, "Because I'll gladl--" Casey smacked him with his own pillow. "I'm kidding." Derek was just glad that they were comfortable with one another joke again. All those weird and bubbly feelings were set aside and he was just happy to have her back in his life. He shrugged, "Lunch?"

Casey furrowed her eyebrows at him, "Lunch?"

"Yeah, you know? The second meal of the day…it comes after breakfast? I'm telling you, Casey, you can be dumber than a box of socks."

Her hand made over to its usual spot to cover Derek's mouth, "It's dumber than a box of rocks--" she corrected.

"You_mm_would_m_know…" he mumbled against her hand.

She immediately took her hand off and wiped it on his mattress, "UGH!" she grabbed the hand sanitizer out her bag again and wiped off the germs, "And what I was trying to say before was why lunch? What time is it?"

"Ohhhh…" he chuckled, "It's like 1 in the afternoon. I mean it makes sense we fell asleep at 5am. So come on…," Derek saw the hesitance on her face, "I promise I'll chew the right amount. And I won't talk with my mouth full."

She smiled, "Then sure."

Just as she was about to get up she noticed a dark wet stain on his grey shirt, "Did you spill on yourself, Derek? Because when you drink out of a cup…" she brought the mug to her lips to show him, "you bring it up to your lips that way it doesn't spill on your shirt…"

Derek furrowed his eyebrows, "What the hell are you talking about ? You're the one tha--" he shut up and realized she had no idea.

- - - - **FOUR HOURS AGO**

"_Derek?" she whispered. "Derek?"_

_He groaned and turned his head to look up at her from the floor, "What Casey? I'm trying to sleep."_

"_Derek…" she whined._

"_What?!" he complained with her lack of words other than his name. _

"_Sleep up here." _

"_Casey, are you sure? Or are you sleep talking like you normally do sometimes?" _

"_Derek, sleep up here!" she demanded. _

_He shrugged alright, "You asked them when they're wide awake and the say no! But when it's sleep talk time that's when they want it." He muttered to himself as he got onto the bed. She quickly made herself comfortable in his arms; her head resting on his chest, thus giving Derek the wet stain. Drool. "Totally worth it."_

_- - - -  
_

"I'm the one that what?" she raised an eyebrow at him.

To tell her or not to tell her that was the question. It was her idea and he'd only be telling her to truth…but then again…he'd probably get hit. He smirked, "Let's just say, Casey, that you gave me this wet stain." He got up and went out of the bedroom door.

Casey glared and followed him, "What's that supposed to mean!"

--

After lunch they went back to her place and hung out for a bit. "Oh!" Casey smacked his thigh in excitement as they watched TV. He slowly rubbed it and Casey frowned, "I'm sorry I keep hitting you. It's sort of a reflex."

Derek quickly stopped rubbing his leg and his ego kicked in, "Pssh. Like it hurts…" Casey laughed at him and he needed to quickly change the subject, "So what? Oh what?"

"Last night when I was sleeping I remembered some more stuff."

"How we got married?!" he got excited.

She shook her head, "Nope not how. We were already getting ready to be married. We were already 'engaged'" she used hand quotations, "and we called Emily and Sam like they told us we did. Then we were about to get married but _you_ woke me up."

"_Sor-ry." _Derek snorted as he flipped through the channels, "Anyway, I already knew that. Tell me when you find out something _worth_ knowing." His eyes darted to animals on TV, "Yes!! Panda sneezing!" he kept laughing and didn't hear Casey make any sort of noise so he turned to look at her. Casey gave him that slow turn of the head and the infamous glare was back, "Wh-why ya staring at me like that, Wife?" he laughed nervously.

Casey took a deep breath; glare still intact, "Were you _planning_ on telling me this…" she muttered quietly. He could hear the tone of her voice getting more ferocious. "I clearly asked you that one day if you remembered anything else…" His possessed wife was making a comeback. "Were you going to wait till I found things out on my _own_?!" finally she yelled at him.

"Heh-heh…I didn't think it was important." He nervously defended himself from the screams he knew he was about to receive.

"WASN'T IMPORTANT?!" She screamed.

Derek jumped up off the couch, "I'm just gonna go now, Casey." He darted toward the door but Casey caught up and grabbed him by the ear, "Casey!! OWWW!! Stop! This is physical abuse!!"

She pulled him back over to the couch and let go, "What else do you remember?!" she demanded to know.

He rubbed his ear, "Nothing. That's all! I swear. That's all I remember too!" he assured her with a frown, "Dammit, Casey."

Casey calmed down and sat on the coffee table in front of him, "Let me take a look." She saw how red his ear became and she instantly felt guilty, "Hold on." Casey made her way to the freezer and grabbed a bag of frozen peas; she sat back in front of Derek and put it on his ear, "You are one a big baby…but this should help."

He smirked, "I like how you hurt and heal me all in the matter of seconds…"

Casey shook her head and just simply laughed at him, "Derek, shut up." He chuckled, "I swear if you're holding back information from me I will make sure you won't have ears at all."

"Good." He joking muttered, "Then I won't have to hear the hollers and roars that come out of my wife's mouth."

"Yeah," she snorted, "You'd love that wouldn't you?" He nodded while she got closer to his ear as she slightly pulled the bag back, "It looks like it's all healed," she whispered quietly.

Derek turned his head slightly so it was in front of hers, "Yeah." The next thing they both knew was him slowly bringing his hand up and gently putting it on hers. Those weird feelings that were set aside were slowly starting to resurface.

Suddenly there was silence between them. It wasn't awkward. It was comfortable as they just stared at one another. Thoughts were running a mile a minute through both their heads as they found their faces inching closer to one another. Was this going to be a kiss? A kiss that they would share while in the right state of mind? Eyes were starting to close; just a little bit closer and we'd find out.

"Uh, hey guys." The door opened up to bring in roommate Lindsay. Casey and Derek quickly pulled apart and stood up.

"Hey Linds. How was your day?" Casey was embarrassed and avoided Derek's face.

"It was okay," She saw Derek and smiled, "Hey, Derek."

He rubbed the back of his head and kept his eyes on Casey, "Uh…hey, Lindsay," she quickly made her way into her room. "Um, Casey…."

"I'm sorry, Derek." She buried her head hands, "I don't know what I was thinking." Casey finally looked up at him, "This keeps happening when we're together," she complained, "This, the constant cuddling, and the other time in my room!"

Derek shrugged, "Are you mad about it?" he decided to ask. There was no harm in asking. He kinda missed seeing her mini freak-outs.

Casey sighed and stared down at her feet, "I don't know. I don--" she abruptly stopped and brought her head up to raise an eyebrow at a slightly laughing Derek, "Don't try and use psychology on me, Derek Venturi."

Derek missed this, he really did. He continued his chuckling and raised his hands in defense, "I swear I wasn't." Casey let out a sigh of relief as the embarrassment was washed away with a simple joke. "Well I better get going." They both walked toward the front door. "I had fun today, Wife."

Casey nodded, "Me too, _Hubby_." He went out and looked at her, "I'll see you later then." He nodded. "Bye, Derek."

"Bye, Case." She closed the door and both of them stood there with their backs against it. They took a deep sigh and wondered what would've happened if Lindsay hadn't interrupted. Derek had another impulse which led to Casey being shaken out of her thoughts with a knock on the door. She opened it and there stood Derek to which she raised an eyebrow to. He stood there a bit nervous, "Casey," he shrugged, "you wanna go out to dinner tomorrow?"

Before Casey could even think, she had a smile on her face and answered in a second, "Sure."

Derek grinned, "Great. I'll swing by after class." He shook his head, "I mean I'm going to go home first to shower _then_ come here…" he started to ramble, "Ugh! I mean…you know so I can ge--"

Casey decided to help him out. Never in her life had she seen him act like a nervous idiot, "Derek, I get it. I'll see you tomorrow." Derek nodded. "Bye." She closed the door.

Derek finally walked away. He brought the palm of his hand to his forehead and began to smack it over and over again, "Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!"

--

Teasing was something Casey could never get away from ever since she moved into the Venturi's. She'd get teased by Derek every single day; at school she had a period of teasing. Here was Casey Venturi at 21 years of age and an adult. So why was the teasing still there? She was a grown woman now and now more than ever was she getting teased. It was of course by her girlfriends and it of course was because of her secret marriage to Derek Venturi…but still! Why the teasing? Was there something about it that was appealing? She wouldn't know. Casey was starting to think that, yeah, maybe she would make a shitty psychologist.

Here she sat having her daily girl talk with her girlfriends over lunch. Let the teasing begin.

"So, Case…" Gina brought her coffee cup to her lips and Casey could see the grin hiding.

Casey raised a pathetic eyebrow at them, "So…what?"

It was Emily's turn to join in the teasing. Emily tried to hold in laughter, "How was your 'hanging out'" she used air quotes, "last night?" she took a sip of her water, "Anything interesting happen?"

Casey scoffed, "Oh please." She knew what their game was and she wasn't going to fall for it. "Gina was there. Why don't you ask her?"

"Okay. " Emily purposely turned her head to look at Gina, "Gina?"

Gina decided to act out. She and Emily would purposely do these things to Casey and this time was no different. Well it was different because this time the teasing was a hundred times worse. "Yes, Emily?" she raised a cocky eyebrow. Casey just watched them and all she could do was put her chin in the palm of her hand and await the plague of torment that she was going to be receiving.

"How was the hanging out yesterday, hm?" her playful nature was starting to make Casey want to strangle the barista at the counter.

"Oh, Emily," Gina waved a hand, "it was fantastic. Our favorite married couple played video gam--"

"Rock Band," Casey coughed out to correct.

Gina looked at Casey, "Oh, I'm _sorry_," she focused her playful eyes back to Emily and continued their acting, "_Rock Band_," she mocked, "So they finally finished around 5 in the morning." Gina shrugged, "And after that…who knows."

Casey ran a hand through her hair and she felt a migraine coming along. This time the migraine wasn't named Derek, it was named Gimily. Emily and Gina sat up straight and crossed their arms whilst the grin formed on their lips, "After that? Hm, Casey…" Emily started, "What happened after that?"

Casey buried her head in her hands, "My head hurts!" she whined.

"Does your head hurt because you had a little too much fun after your video games?" Gina tried to contain her laughter as Emily spoke.

Casey slowly brought her head out of her hands and glared at them. She glared daggers at them and it wasn't helping her headache go away any faster. "Why are you guys so mean to me?" Gimily shrugged, "Nothing happened, I'll have you know." She could see the unconvincing faces on her friends, "Nothing. I slept over--" immediately she saw Gimily get excited, "And _I_ slept on the bed and he slept on the floor. Nothing happened."

Casey tried her hardest to assure them but it just was not holding up with her best friends. Emily looked at Gina, "_Why_ is that so hard to believe, Gina?"

Gina pursed her lips in thought, "I really don't know, Emily. I mean come on here's two people haven't seen one another and they expect us to believe that they slept separate from one another? They are Cuddle Buddies for crying out loud!" The term Cuddle Buddy triggered what happened that night in Derek's bed. She asked him to sleep next to her and boy if she let Emily and Gina know she'd never hear the end of it so she decidedly kept it to herself.

Emily nodded in agreement, "I mean if _I_ was away from my husband for two whole months I would totally jump him the instant I saw him."

Casey shook her head and couldn't help but laugh, "That's because you're disgusting." Emily nodded in agreement once more. "Seriously guys, nothing happened. I just spent time with Derek, who I shall admit I missed a lot. It was just fun. That's all. No funny business. Plus you idiots, did you forget the fact that he's hardly my husband? He's just labeled my husband, who's really just my friend." She wrinkled her nose in thought, "And step-brother." Gimily just blinked at her as she tried to explain and immediately she knew she was wasting her breath. Casey sighed, "Derek and I, we're jus--" she was interrupted by her phone going off and she checked her cell phone. It was a text message she was checking. Casey didn't even realize she was smiling and that only led Emily and Gina to raise an eager eyebrow. Casey put her phone down then looked back up at them, "So what were we talking about?"

Emily just _had_ to ask even though she knew the answer. "So who's the one making you smile, Casey?"

Casey scoffed nervously, "I'm not smiling, guys. It was just Derek. He's just asking if we were still on for tonight." Emily and Gina put their coffee cups down and sat up straight. "What?! Why do you guys keep looking at me like that?! It's freaking me out!"

"What's going on tonight?" Gina asked; eyebrow still raised.

"Yeah, Casey, what's going on tonight?" Emily ganged up on her too with a slight grin.

Casey began to shake her head once more at them. She felt like she was being attacked for meaningless reasons. "I'm just going to have dinner."

"With your husband?" Gimily asked.

"Yes! I'm going to dinner with Derek!" she was frustrated, "It's just dinner. I don't see you guys saying anything like this when we have breakfasts or lunch. He's used to always be at my house and you guys didn't say anything. It's just dinner! What's the matter?!" Casey cried out, "It's just dinner."

"It's a date." Gina coughed out quietly to herself.

Casey arched her eyebrows, "It is _not_ a date." Casey assured them, "It is dinner with my friend. Din-ner." Gina and Emily began laughing like idiots and Casey frowned at them, "Seriously, why are you guys so mean to me? I said it's just dinner." Casey looked down and started to think. Was it really dinner or was it a date? Casey scoffed, "It has to be dinner." She was quiet while Emily and Gina watched her make her own realizations. "I mean yeah, we almost kissed again…but we didn't."

"Wait. Wait. Wait!" Emily yelped and Casey looked up at her with confusion while people started to stare, "You and Derek almost kissed? AGAIN?!" The two girls stared at Casey seriously, awaiting an answer from their friend.

Casey looked at all the people staring around them, "Go on with your day!" She nervously looked back at the two girls, "Yeah. Almost. Yesterday." She muttered quietly, "Then he asked me if I wanted to go out to dinner…" Casey looked down again, "and he looked so nervous when he asked…" Casey buried her head in her hands, "Oh my God. This is a date isn't it?"

"Yeah." "Yup." Emily and Gina told her, nodding.

Casey looked up at them, "What am I supposed to do now?! He asked me out on a date! My step-brother--"

"And husband." Emily added while Gina nodded.

"Is that even normal?! I mean yeah it's weird that we're married but that was because we were drunk! I would never marry Derek being un-drunk. Oh! What in the world! You guys?! What am I supposed to do?!" Casey was freaking out and the other two just couldn't hold in their laughter anymore. "Why are you laughing?! This is serious! My step-brother _slash_ husband wants to take me out to dinner!

"Casey, calm down." Emily simply told her, "We're just kidding okay?" She looked over at Gina, "Right Gina?" Emily threw her a stare to go along.

Gina caught on and nodded, "Oh," she looked at Casey, "Oh, yeah. It's just dinner, Casey." Gina tried her hardest to assure her.

Casey smiled at them, "Really? So I'm not crazy right? It's just dinner with my friend. Derek's just asking as a friend just like he does when we go for breakfasts and lunches, right?"

Emily and Gina tried to hold in a few snorts. They were successful, "Yeah." "Yup, definitely."

Casey had all the pressure wash off of her. Relief was there. She wasn't crazy and there was no real reason to freak out. Her friends assured her that it was just a dinner outing with a friend. It was…right? A friend she missed a lot and at that moment she wanted to smack herself for having to add in that detail. "Thanks, guys. I feel much better now." She took a sip of her coffee, "Now I can actually have fun tonight. Yeah! You guys are the best. It's just dinner." Casey stood up, "Alright I gotta go take my last final! Bye!" she rushed off.

Emily and Gina sat there in silence.

Emily slowly brought the coffee cup to her lips as she stared ahead, "It's totally a date."

Gina nodded in agreement as she also took a sip, "Oh yeah, definitely a date."

--

"I swear to God that one day I'm going to cut Gina's lips off. Sometimes she just talks and talks and talks and talk--"

Derek laughed, "Casey's the same exact way…"

Sam raised an eyebrow, "Duh, Derek. I used to date her too."

"Yeah, Sammy, don't rub it in my fa--" Derek furrowed his eyebrows at Sam, "Wait. What do you mean by too? I'm not dating her."

Sam wanted to mentally slap himself for letting that slip out but he felt like he might as well play off it. He knew Gina would be proud, "Derek, shut the hell up. You admitted you liked her--"

"That was a temporary brain issue." Derek thought up the only thing he could.

Sam snorted, "Riiight because not only do you like her, you two are married and you asked her out on a date. I mean isn't that …dating?" Then Sam sat on the bench in thought. Eyebrows were furrowed as well as the pursing of lips, "Well…you two are more than dating because you're married…"

"Just quit while you're ahead," Derek shook his head at his idiot of a best friend, "I just asked her out to dinner. We're friends. Casey and I? We're just friends with the legal name of Husband and Wife. Nothing more. That whole little 'I like Casey'" he mocked himself, "That's all gone. I just missed my friend that's all. Nothing more, okay? Two months without seeing her just made me a little crazy and that caused me to say things I didn't mean." He lied to Sam and he thought saying it out loud would make it true. Unfortunately for him, it was far from the truth.

Sam could see him getting worked up and that only told him what he and the girls knew was true. He decided to just give Derek a break, "Calm down, D. I'm just messing with you."

Derek calmed down, "Yeah, yeah. I know. Well I gotta go."

Sam grinned, "Have fun tonight!"

"It's just dinner!" Derek yelled as headed out of the locker room.

Sam shook his head as Derek left, "Totally a date."

As Derek made his way toward his car and all he could think about was this stupid dinner he invited her to. He knew he did it on an impulse and he really just felt like hanging out with her again but he didn't know whether it was going to be a serious outing. Even if deep down he had weird but good feelings about her, he enjoyed being her friend a lot more, "Oh holy hell, what if she thinks this is a date?!" He got into his car, "Oh shit. We almost kissed and then I asked her…she thinks this is a date doesn't she? Shit." He started up his car, "Dammit. This is a date."

--

Casey sat in class, where on a normal day she'd be throwing all her attention to what was in front of her. Well of course it was a final and Casey drew _all_ her attention to it, but usually she'd go over her answers about ten times before she turned it in. Once she finished her final she just sat there staring at her paper. She spent this time _not_ going over answers. Today wasn't a normal day. Today was not that day. Today was having her mind occupied with thoughts of what was going to happen later that night. After her talk with the girls, she convinced herself that this wasn't a date; that it was just a friendly outing. Right? Yeah, Casey was still convinced that it was a friendly outing…but then she started to wonder if Derek thought it was friendly or a date. Casey started to lightly panic as she thought about it. Thinking about Derek and an actual date started to bring back those incidents that happened between them before; the two almost kisses and the constant cuddling or talk of cuddling.

"Agh!" Casey grumbled aloud and the next thing she saw was the class looking at her. She blushed with embarrassment as everyone including her professor looked at her.

"Is there something you can't understand _again_, Ms. McDonald?" her professor questioned with an annoyed expression.

Casey felt like she was being put on the spot. It's not her fault that she has a lot of questions. She had to make sure she did perfect on her final. She ran a hand through her hair and laughed nervously, "No. No Professor Michaels, I understand everything."

"Well good then. If there's anyone else who wants to interrupt…now's the time." No one answered and he got back to reading his magazine.

Casey let out a sigh of relief, "Damn you, Venturi!" and muttered quietly to herself.

--

She sat on her couch awaiting his arrival; awaiting their dinner outing. The past hour and a half was making her crazy. Crazy in thought about what was going to happen during the next few hours and it was scaring her. Casey bounced her leg up and down nervously as she bit her lip constantly thinking about him. Never did she get this nervous about an outing or dinner with anyone. Why now?

He knocked on the door and Casey took a deep breath and got up to answer it. There he stood with a little Calla Lily, which was Casey's favorite flower. She had to admit this was the cutest thing she's ever seen but at the same time it just confirmed her suspicions. She groaned aloud, "Derek!" she grabbed him by the arm and pulled him inside the house.

"What?!" he frowned.

"_This_ is _not_ a date." She shook her head, "_Not_ a date!" she repeated.

Just then Derek was relieved. For the past hour and a half, he was nervous. He paced around his room trying to figure out what he was going to do. Sure somewhere inside of him he kinda thought about Casey and going out on a date but as he thought about it some more it made him nervous. He didn't know if Casey saw him in that way or even tolerated him half the time; he just knew that Casey was really great to hang out with and he didn't want to ruin it. Then the thought ran in his head about what happened the night before and wondered if Casey _did_ think it was a date. Derek just went with his instinct and was prepared for anything. He gave her an eased out sigh, "Oh thank God. I thought you thought that this was a date. Stupid Sam."

"Stupid Emily and Gina." Casey added and there they both laughed. No more panic or crazy. Just the Derek and Casey they knew and were comfortable with. "I mean even if it's not a date," she shrugged in a girly manner, "…can I have my favorite flower?" she grinned.

Derek laughed, "Sure." They walked out to his car and she smacked him over the head in remembrance, "OW!" he arched his eyebrows and glared at her, "Seriously, Casey, like do you just hit me because you feel the need to do it?"

She rolled her eyes, "No you idiot! I remembered we cuddled that night in your bed and that's how you got that wet stain!" He immediately started laughing. "I begged you to tell me all day yesterday and you didn't!"

"Sorry…" he chuckled, "You're a little slow in memory, Casey. Just trying to help you remember on your own." She smacked him on the shoulder again. "Agh! Casey! Stop!" he got quiet, "It's actually starting to hurt now…"

Casey couldn't help but laugh as they got into the car, "Anyway, you didn't have to cuddle with me even if sleepy me asked you to."

Derek reached over and pinched her cheek, which she smacked his hand away almost immediately. "You know I have to cater to my wife's needs, silly."

"Ha-Ha." She let out sarcastically, "Start the damned car, already."

He started the engine, "See catering right now." Casey rolled her eyes.

--

"See this is fine, right?" Casey chuckled as they sat at their table, "Friends."

Derek nodded, "Yeah, I mean talk about pressure."

"You know what I just realized, Derek?" he raised his eyebrows to let her know to continue, "Every time I'm with the girls and we talk about you…" Derek grinned to himself at the fact they talk about him, "they make me crazy. But then when I'm with you I'm not crazy anymore." She threw herself a pathetic laugh, "Does that make sense?"

Derek knew exactly what she meant, "Yup. Just like when Sam says something to make me overthink, I go a little overboard... then when I'm with you I'm okay again. Things are clear."

"Exactly."

--

"Don't you find it funny how we are legally supposed to be separated but here we are hanging out all the time." Casey inquired as they walked toward her door, "I mean, now and before two months ago."

"Yeah, I mean you'd think that once someone legally told us to separate that we wouldn't think for a second to jump on that opportunity."

She stopped in front of the door and looked at him, "So why, Derek? Why haven't we just gotten out of each other's lives? Why aren't we actually separated?" This very question ran through Casey's mind and as many times as she tried to answer it, she just didn't know. So she thought maybe Derek would have an answer for her.

Derek shrugged, "I don't know, Casey." He looked down than back up at her, "Do you want to just stop? Do you want me out of your life? I can give you more space and an actual separation; I mean I somehow survived for two months--"

Casey could see how serious he became; she shook her head, "Derek, no. Of course I don't want you _out_ of my life. I was just asking why? This may be hard to believe, Derek, but" she leaned closer to him and whispered, "I actually like having you around and I really enjoy your company. I missed you a lot for the last two months." She pulled back and laughed, "That's the truth, Derek." Casey watched his face. She knew there was actual thinking going on behind that slight smile. Her laughing stopped, "Der--"

He shook his head and smiled, "Me too, Casey. I feel the same way." Derek let out a convincing laugh, "I mean jeez I never thought I'd like having my wife around, right?" They both shared a laugh. "Well I had fun tonight, Case."

"Me too, Hubby," she opened up her door, "We'll hangout again. Just give me a call. Finals are over."

"Thank God." He joked with a smile as he nodded toward her, "Goodnight, Casey."

"Night, Derek." She closed the door and went straight to her room. Not even a minute later she heard a knock on the door. Casey opened up and groaned, "Seriously, Derek, do you ev--" Derek immediately brought his hands to cup her face and he pulled her in for a kiss. Casey brought her hands on his wrists and pulled him off of her. "Derek, what are you doing?"

Derek ran a hand through his hair, "Oh my God. Case, I'm sorry. I just thought that earlier…what you sa--"

Casey offered him a smile, "Derek, it's okay. Really," she could see how embarrassed he was, "Derek, I just don't think it's a good idea. I mean we still want that divorce in like 7 months, right?"

Derek arched his eyebrows and nodded to save himself from how embarrassed he was feeling at the moment. He would never admit this to anyone but he felt really hurt at what she just said. Divorce was the last thing he thought about, "Oh. Yeah. Right…you're right. 7 months. Divorce…I don't know what I was thinking. I'm sorry."

Casey offered him a smile, "Derek, it's okay. It really is." She reached over to put a hand on his shoulder but he pulled away and she frowned, "Derek?"

Derek hated this serious stuff. He hated feelings and the talks that come with it. He just wanted to get out and away. Offering a smile to wash away the idiocy that was his actions, "I guess I'll get going." Derek quickly turned to walk away but Casey put a hand on his shoulder and he could see an emotion on her face; one he couldn't read very well, "What?"

"Are you okay?" He nodded and gave her a smile to reassure her, "Hmm…well call me or swing by so we can hang out again, alright?" Derek merely nodded and went on his way. Casey sadly closed the door and brought her back against it like she usually does when he leaves. She brought the palm of her hand to her head and felt like smacking herself, "I _am_ dumber than a box of socks."

* * *

**Reviews would be lovely! Just like you all are :)  
**


	9. Senseless Little Bird

**AN: sorry. Internet was on the fritz. I'm updating now, though. :)**

**Disclaimer: nothing owned.**

* * *

Separation was the term that labeled their marital status. Yeah, so maybe they were hardly in a marriage but legally they were. And they were separated. For the past three weeks they were separated. For the last three weeks they hardly saw one another because she was being avoided. Avoided by her husband ever since that night at her apartment. She told herself that her instinct was to stop it because it just didn't feel right. She wasn't sure if there were feelings and she sure as hell didn't know if _she_ had feelings for him. There was still that divorce that they both needed to get in 7 months and getting involved with him was just…it just made her brain hurt.

Just up until two months ago, he was Derek Venturi: Casey's annoying step-brother that she accidently got married to. But besides that, he became her friend that she actually enjoyed having around. Now…now here she was: being avoided by that friend who was her step-brother and husband… and right now she didn't like it one bit.

For the past three weeks she waited for him to call or come over, she even made an attempt to call him but he never picked up. There were many occasions where she stopped by pretending to hang out with Gina but she was really there hoping to bump into Derek. Unfortunately for her, he was never home. Gina even told her when Derek was home but he'd weasel his way out. So she just gave up trying and she hoped they could just get back to the way they were. And now more than ever was a perfect reason as to why she didn't want to get involved with him because things like this happen. Feelings get hurt and avoiding continues. She hated this.

There she sat in her row, slowly looking around at the people. Well she could care less about the people, she just wanted to see one person and so far she hadn't seen any sign of him. She knew he cared about graduation, so he had to be there somewhere. Waiting patiently for the V's to make their way to the stage and finally they did. She sat up intently as she looked at the row's line and there he was. Derek Venturi and he was perfectly fine. She sort of hoped he was sick or something just so she was sure that maybe that was the reason he was avoiding her…but no. He was there in all his glory as he looked out to his class and yelled out a "Hell Yeah, I graduated!" Casey rolled her eyes and all she could think about was how badly she wanted to hurry up and get out of this hell hole and talk to him.

"Hurry the hell up!" she muttered through her teeth, "Damn announcements take forever." She turned her head and saw her neighbor raising a suspicious eyebrow at her. Casey laughed nervously, "Sorry…I…uh…really have to pee. Yeah."

"Oh," he held up his empty bottle of water, "You're welcome to use my bottle."

Casey wrinkled her nose in disgust and stared away, "No thanks."

--

Finally the graduation was over and she was rushing to get out of the place. She was really annoyed with the traffic of people just standing around; it was stopping her from getting out this damned vicinity. There she found herself standing stuck in a sea full of people and at that point she was so angry that she ending up bum-rushing everyone and their mothers. Finally she made it free to go out the doors and outside the venue. "So _damn_ claustrophobic."

Sam and Gina were standing outside and she darted over to them in an angry manner. They were a bit startled by her negative appearance toward them, "Wh-what's wrong, Casey?" Gina nervously let out.

Casey groaned as she paced back and forth in front of them, "De-rek!" she stopped and glared at them, "Derek Venturi is my problem! Can you guys believe him?!"

"What? He seemed perfectly fine to me?" Sam inquired and this made Casey even more angry.

"Exactly! He's perfectly fine!" She wrinkled her nose and glared staring ahead, "He's just great and that bastard has been ignoring me!" She quietly ran a hand through her hair, "Was I _wrong?"_ they were both taken aback by Scary Casey coming out to play, "Was I _wrong_ to stop him? Should I have just let him kiss me or something?" Sam and Gina blinked at her, "Hello?!" she screamed.

They were startled, "Umm…" Gina shrugged, "We already talked about this, Casey."

- - - -

"_He totally kissed me and I stopped him." Casey quietly admitted to her two friends._

_Emily and Gina both had wide eyes. Both opened their mouths to speak but immediately closed it right after. They were speechless. Gina shook her head and looked over at Emily, who also had disappointment on her face. "Can you be--" she threw a glance at her completely incoherent friend and immediately put up a hand to block her vision of Casey. "Can you believe what she did?!" she muttered quietly to Emily._

_Casey groaned, "Are you guys seriously going to do this?"_

"_Do you hear something, Gina?" Emily sang out sarcastically as she, too, avoided looking at her friend._

_Gina shook her head, "Nope. All I hear is a senseless little bird."_

"_Senseless?" Casey scoffed, "I'm Senseless?!" _

_Emily looked around, "I hear it again, Gina. The bird keeps practically begging for something but when it gets it…it doesn't want it!"_

"_Damn bird," Gina muttered loudly, "is so damn stupid! No wonder they all fly into that glass window all the time. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid."_

"_Fine!" Casey got up, "I don't need this," and finally Emily and Gina snapped out of their act._

"_Sit your ass down, Casey. We're just messing with you." Emily annoyingly told her and she did. "We just don't understand why."_

"_First of all, he sprung it on me and it was the first thing I could think of doing." Gimily sat unconvinced, "You guys! Seriously it didn't feel right. And now I feel like a total monster!"_

"_You should feel like a monster!" Emily shrieked, "Finally he actually felt the need to kiss you. You reject him, Casey. I don't understand. I really don't. Humor me, please!" she begged._

"_Did you idiots _and_ Derek forget that there's still a divorce we have to get in 7 months?"_

_Gimily got quiet. "Oh." "That's right."_

_Casey pinched her temples and bit her lip in thought, "It didn't feel like the right time, okay? It didn't."_

_Gina sighed, "Well in that case, if it didn't feel right then it didn't." Emily threw her a glare in which she couldn't believe Gina was letting this go so quickly. "What, Emily? She's right." _

_Casey offered her friend a smile, "Thanks. That's all I needed to know. Well I gotta go. I'll talk to guys later. Bye."_

"_Bye." "Bye, Casey."_

_They watched her leave and Gina cleared her throat, "You know I was totally kidding. That girl is completely dense sometimes."_

_Emily nodded in agreement, "Damn straight."_

_- - - -  
_

Nodding ahead, Casey recalled their talk, "Yeah, exactly, I felt it wasn't right so I stopped him." She brought her eyes to look at a frightened-by-the-girl-talk Sam, "What about you?" she muttered toward him.

Raising his hands in defense, Sam didn't have an answer, "I'm not part of th--"

"SAM!" Casey startled him again and Gina nudged him as she threw him a stare to just answer her before she goes more crazy. People don't like Crazy Casey. She's scary.

Sam sighed and decided to just tell her, "You really hurt his feelings."

"Feelings?!" Casey screamed in a whisper, "Guys don't _have_ feelings!--"

"Hey guys…" Derek came in from behind her and immediately she stopped talking. He looked over at Sam and Gina and he pretty much just threw a glance over at Casey. "So what are we doing ton--"

Casey glared and she immediately felt anger run through her veins, "Oh, you son of a bitch," she muttered through her teeth, "don't pretend like I'm not here."

He arched his eyebrows and fixed his look at Sam and Gina, "Do you guys hear something? It sounds like someone trying to cut me off while I was in the middle of doing something."

"Oh!" Casey let out a loud with a sarcastic laugh, "Wow! He's a funny guy this one!"

Sam and Gina were a bit frightened by the fact that they were stuck in the middle of an argument. "Umm…"

"Grabbing drinks at that one place right?" Sam chimed in to change the hostile environment that was becoming this area they stood in.

Derek nodded with slight sarcasm, "Yeah. Can't wait." He caught sight of some people he had to see. Well he wanted to see them so he could get away from the annoyance that was Casey, "Alright. I'll see you guys later."

"Ugh!" Casey started her angry pacing again, "Damn that Venturi!" She stopped, sighed, and watched him go over to some girls where he was laughing and smiling and all she could feel was horrible. She nodded slowly to herself, "Yeah," she stifled a sad laugh, "he's perfectly fine without me." Gina reached over to comfort a sad Casey but she pulled back and shook her head with a reassuring smile. "I'm fine. He's fine. We're supposed to be separated anyway, right?" Sam and Gina slowly shrugged, "He's just making things easier for me." Casey felt the need to just get away from everyone and everything, "I'm just gonna go home now."

"You still gonna come out with us for drinks later?" Gina asked…well kinda hoping it would cheer her up.

Casey shrugged, "I don't know. Not really up for anything right now. I'll give you guys a call. Happy Grad Day." They nodded and she made her way toward her car.

"It looks like those two are playing hard to get, huh?" Gina crazily muttered aloud to herself while her line of vision stayed on Casey.

Sam raised an eyebrow, "Are you talking to yourself?"

Gina didn't even hear him, "They'll be back fighting and not fighting and almost kissing and rejected kissing and cuddling before we know it." She nodded rapidly and all Sam saw was crazy, "Mhmm…yup."

"Wow." Sam sighed. Deadpanned. "So you talk to yourself now. Interesting."

--

Casey felt a tap on her shoulder as she reached her car. It was her family and quickly she realized that she had them come out to see her. Because Derek was running laps in her mind, she had totally forgot, "Hey, guys," she offered them smiles.

Nora was crying with joy at the sight of her daughter, "Casey," she hugged her tight, "I'm so proud of you, Sweetie."

Casey pulled back and smiled, "Thanks, Mom." This was supposed to be the greatest day of her life and right now she was feeling just the opposite.

"We need pictures!" Nora yelped out as she rummaged through her purse to get the camera out. Her eyes scanned all the people around, "Where's Derek?" Casey really didn't care at that moment. Nora looked over at George, "Georgie, we need Derek so we can get some pictures!"

"Okay, okay." George went to go find his son. A few minutes later, came back the two Venturi guys. "Okay, we got Derek," he breathed with a hand resting on his bad hip.

Nora gave him a big hug to which he wrinkled his nose to, "Derek! I'm so proud of you, too! Our little future filmmaker or hockey star!"

"Ha. We'll see," Derek tried to get out of the uncomfortable hug, "Thanks Nora."

"Time for pictures!" Nora positioned her camera, "Okay, you two, get together--"

"Wh-what?" "Excuse me?!" both Derek and Casey nervously sang at the same time.

Nora sighed, "You two need to stop acting like there are cooties around. I know you aren't as bad as you once were. Now get together so I can take pictures!" She demanded still with that crazy Mom smile.

Casey and Derek groaned as they inched their way together for a photo-op. They both secretly threw their eyes to give one another glances as Nora went on a picture taking tirade, "You two are so adorable." This only made them groan some more. Finally she finished and they quickly separated. "Alright, you two, so we're going to take you out to lunch, right? I know you and your friends have an outing tonight so come on let's go."

They were all ready to head into their cars but Casey stood behind, "Hey, you guys, I'm feeling pretty tired right now." She threw out a convincing yawn followed by a laugh, "Graduation takes a lot out of a person. So you guys go ahead and go. I'm just going to head home." Derek watched her intently, arching his eyebrows at her actions. He could tell she was upset and it was obvious it was because of him. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't upset being around her at the moment too.

Nora frowned, "Casey, this is yours and Derek's day. We have to take you out to lunch."

Casey offered her a smile, "I know, I know. We can go another day when I'm feeling better." She gave Nora and George a hug, "Just go ahead and take Derek out. You guys have some fun. I need a cat-nap or something."

"Alright, Sweetie." "Okay, Casey." Nora and George told her. "We're really proud of you."

Casey nodded and headed toward her car to which Derek caught up with her. "Hey, Casey?"

She shook her head, "It speaks!" her mouth let out a bitter snort.

"Hey!" she turned to look at him, "You were the one that called me a son of a bitch for the first time in 3 weeks."

"Because it's been 3 weeks!" she quickly opened her door to get in but Derek grabbed her elbow to stop her, "Just go because they are waiting for you," she sighed, "Just let me go and be perfectly fine without me. Let me go, Derek." He did and she quickly got into her car to where she absently mindedly grabbed a pen and a crumpled up receipt from the floor and started to write, "Don't forget to buy scissors…"

--

Casey woke up to a loud banging on her door and boy how she hated abrupt wake ups during her sleep. She let out a frustrated scream as she forced herself out of bed and over to her front door. The banging was loud once more, "Someone needs to…" she turned the knob, "learn som--" there he stood with a little bouquet of flowers for her and all she could do is arch her eyebrows toward him. "What is this some peace offering or something?" he reciprocated her look as the words came out, "Because I don't need it."

Casey tried to shut the door but he brought a foot in to stop it, "Casey, it's not a peace offering it's just I know how much this day means to you and I got you this as a present. Now will you please accept them?" he practically begged.

She sighed and gave him a reluctant nod to which he smiled as he gave her the flowers, "Fine." He handed them to her and immediately she took in the fragrant scent.

"Can I get a smile of some sort?" he grinned jokingly to make the mood much lighter between them. She offered him a small smile to which he didn't complain to, "There it is! That's all I'm asking for."

She rolled her eyes and the next thing she knew was bringing herself in his arms for a hug to which he immediately gave back to her. Casey held onto him tight and at that moment it was the only thing that seemed right. These past three weeks took a toll on her and seeing him being his sweet old self was all she needed right now. "Derek Venturi, I am beyond upset with you right now…" she mumbled against him.

Derek instantly smiled and hugged her tighter. He hadn't been this close to her since that embarrassing night but he didn't care. He kinda missed being in this proximity, "What's new?" he joked. He heard her laugh and now he just felt good to be able to be the Derek and Casey they remembered before all these things happened.

Casey pulled back and the first thing she could think of doing was this: grabbing the flowers he got her and hitting him over and over again; the petals flying all over the place until they hit the floor. Yeah, Casey seriously had no control over her emotions and sometimes the only way she could deal with it was to hit him. She muttered, "Don't _ever_ pull this little stunt again!"

He grabbed the flowers from her to stop this physical abuse she was laying upon him, "What stunt?" he knew exactly what she was referring to. There was still a part of him that couldn't understand why it was him that was coming over here and cheering her up when for the last three weeks he was the one who needed it. She should've been the one to fix this but unfortunately for him, Derek Venturi had a soft spot for his wife.

"Avoiding me for 3 weeks?!" she smacked him upside the head, "What the hell is the matter with you?!"

"What the hell is the matter with me?!" he battled back. "_You_ shot _me_ down! You should totally be the one coming to my place and apologizing."

"I did!" she cried out in frustration, "I went to your house over and over again! I tried to talk to you! You kept running away from me!" she defended herself and he was quiet, "See."

For the past three weeks, Derek Venturi was a bit of a wreck in his own right. The past three weeks had been a little hard on him. He had been putting himself down for trying to kiss Casey that night and he felt like an idiot getting shot down. He was Derek Venturi. Girls never shot him down… he shot _them_ down. But here was Casey, his wife, and the only one who he actually gave a damn about in quite some time. He didn't intend on trying to avoid her… it sorta just happened to the point where days became weeks.

Today he knew he was going to have to see her and he knew there was no point in sulking _about_ seeing her. During graduation he knew he had to put on an act to show that he was okay and the incident that happened between them would just stay an incident; hopefully never to be mentioned again. He was happy today and he was celebrating a milestone in his life. But the looks that Casey gave him or the look of hurt that she had when he was around to ignore her made him anything but happy. Derek wanted to be happy and the only way to do that was to have Casey back in his life and right now that's what he was trying to do.

"Casey, I'm sorry for avoiding you." There was that immediate snort that came from her, "I didn't plan on doing it. I just felt really shitty for doing something because you led me on," he tried to hold in a tiny laughter.

Casey managed to let a long gasp escape past her lips, "I did _not_ lead you on!" Derek raised an unbelieving eyebrow as her face scrunched up in thought, "Fine. I'm sorry."

"You should be." He started to fidget with his fingers as he began to speak again, "God, I've never been so embarrassed in my life, Casey."

Casey gave him a sarcastic laugh, "HA! Derek Venturi embarrassed? Since when?!" she laughed and he didn't so she settled herself, "Sorry."

Derek rolled his eyes as they walked over to the couch. Casey folded her legs beneath her as she watched him speak. And all she did see on his face _was_ embarrassment, "Of course I was embarrassed! I mean damn I tried to kiss you, Casey! How else was I supposed to react?"

"Derek," she scooted closer to him, "I told you that night that it was okay." She shook her head, "I didn't think that you'd go and avoid me like that after we just started becoming close again. How do you think _I_ felt when you aren't here to bug me?" she let out a chuckle, "I mean, it was two months of not seeing you and then we had what like two days?" Derek nodded staring ahead, "Then it was back to not seeing you. I really do miss having you around." She shrugged, "I missed you." Casey managed a chuckle, "Every day."

Burying his head in his hands as he sighed, "Casey," he took a deep breath and looked up at her. "You _really_ can't keep messing with me like this."

Casey raised an eyebrow, "Like what?"

He directed a scoff toward her, "Don't pretend like you don't know. You keep sending me mixed signals!" She still looked confused. He shook his head and tried again, his eyes more narrow this time around, "You keep saying things about how you miss having me around and how much you missed me. Even saying things about how when you're with me you aren't crazy and yeah, Casey, maybe this is hard for _you_ to believe but I actually really like you and when you say shit like that, it only makes me think that maybe," he shrugged, "just maybe, you might like me too." He let out a breath that had been stuck somewhere inside him and realized he actually admitted it.

He actually _did_ admit it and she wasn't exactly sure she liked him that way, only that she missed him. And she was unsure of her feelings and now she could see that it was actually hurting him. That Sam was right in saying she hurt his feelings. "Derek, I say those things because I actually mean them. I'm not sure I have feelings for you and I can't lie to you just to make you feel better." Casey swore she saw the hurt flicker on his face and at that moment she felt terrible for putting it there. She softly put her hand on his, where that tingle crept through the fibers of both their hands, "Derek, just because I don't feel that way about you doesn't mean I don't want you around. I hate when you're not around," she snorted, "I never thought I'd ever say that about you." She hinted a small laugh and she could see Derek do the same. "I like when we're able to joke and have fun, you know? You are the only fun I have, I hope you know."

"Really?" he managed a smirk.

Casey nodded, "Yeah, so you can imagine how much hell these last three weeks have been. Constantly getting called stupid by the girls."

"Those are some _very _smart girls." She pouted. "I'm just kidding…" the beam was back, "they are just as stupid as you are."

"De-rek!" he busted out into laughter and immediately she joined him, "See! This is what I'm talking about. I love this…" he nodded, "I don't like being so serious with you because then you go and avoid me for weeks. I don't want to touch that with us."

He nodded slowly, "Yeah…"

"And it's things like this that make me not want to get involved with you other than being your friend and," she laughed, "your wife." Derek laughed and once again felt the need to avoid her eyes as he looked down. Casey brought her fingers to tilt his chin up to look at her again, "Friends?"

Derek knew everything she said was true and friends would be the best thing for them. He would just have to set his feelings aside and try to be the Derek he was to her before all this. Just these last few laughs he had with her were refreshing and it was because they didn't cross that friends barrier. He nodded and confirmed it, "Friends."

"Good. Now, Hubby, give me my hug." He rolled his eyes and chuckled as he leaned forward to give her the hug she requested, "Don't go hiding from me anymore, okay?" she whispered against him.

Derek at the moment just wanted to savor what he had in front of him. There would be no more of these serious about feeling hugs because friends was what they were, "I couldn't even if I tried." Pulling back, he had a little whine in his voice, "So please tell me you changed your mind in coming out with us tonight…" and now it was time to flip the old Derek switch back on. He did a pretty good job doing it.

Casey raised an eyebrow, "How did you know I wasn't going…" he shrugged, "It was Gina wasn't it?"

"Yup." He got closer to her and whispered with a tiny hint of laughter arising from his voice, "She made me come here and say all these nice things to you. Oh, and the flowers too…"

- - - -

"_OW! OW! OW!" Gina grabbed Derek by the ear and sat him down on the couch as she stood angry in front of him, "WHAT THE HELL IS THE MATTER WITH YOU?! THAT HURTS!" he yelled._

"_Derek Venturi, you are going to quit this little bitch act you got going and you're going to talk to Casey."_

_Derek slouched back on the couch, rubbing his red ear. "No. If she wants to talk, she can come here."_

"_She did!! For the past three weeks she tried!"_

_He shrugged, "Tell her to try harder."_

_Gina groaned aloud. "Why are you being so difficult?! Why is Casey so difficult?! You two are one in the same I hope you know."_

"_Yadda, Yadda." Derek rolled his eyes, "Gina, be a dear and fetch me a bag of ice. Please!"_

_Her eyes narrowed with rage, "I am _not_ your slave, Derek." _

_"Samm--"_

_Gina looked over at Sam, who was about to get up, "Sam, sit down!" he did and she threw her look back at Derek, "Sam isn't your slave either!"_

_"Just yours?" Derek snorted while Sam wrinkled his nose._

_"UGH!" She looked around and saw a drumstick on the ground and picked it up, "Okay, Derek. Let's try again." Pointing the drumstick toward Derek, "You will go out, buy some really pretty flowers, and make peace with your wife."_

_Derek laughed nervously, "How in the hell did Sammy and I get stuck with a bunch of angry girls like you two?"_

_Gina took a deep breath, "I'm not even going to reply to that." She dropped and took a seat on the coffee table, "Derek, please?"  
_

_He sat up and grinned, "Only because you ask so nicely." He brought himself off the couch then turned around before heading out, "You wanna give me some money for those really pretty flowers?"_

"_Sam!"_

"_I'm on it!" he reached into his back pocket and handed Derek some money._

- - - -

Casey smacked his shoulder hard, "So you didn't mean any of those things you said?!" she frowned.

He pulled back in hysterical laughter to which she still had a wrinkled nose and a glare, "I did." He settled down and put his hands on her shoulder to assure her, "I meant every word. I promise." She got her half a smile back. "So you'll come out, yes?"

"Fine," she pretended to be annoyed, "I'll come out tonight."

Derek instantly grinned, "Thatta girl. Now get your ass up and get ready because these kitty pajamas aren't going to cut it."

Casey rolled her eyes, "Shut up." She got up, "Let me take a shower."

Derek stood up and had mock seriousness on his face, "You need help with that?"

She shook her head at his perverted act, "Get your mind out of the gutter, boy."

--

She came out of the shower and went into her room only to be startled by Derek sitting on the edge of her bed, "De-REK!"

He laughed as she subconsciously tried to cover herself up even more with her towel, "Calm yourself woman. I've seen it before and it's pretty damn great so go and get dressed."

"Perv." She muttered allowed and it only made him beam brightly at her, "How I let you get away with saying those things to me, I'll never know."

"It's only because you feel flattered when I compliment you," he smirked as he explained matter-of-factly.

"Whatever." She wrinkled her nose due to the unfortunate fact that he was right. She totally felt flattered when he complimented her... she just wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing, "Now if you want me to get ready," she nicely said, "then GET OUT!"

He fell backwards on her bed, "I'm going to take a nap." He grabbed her drool stained pillow and rested comfortably his head, "My eyes will be closed and I won't see a thing." She huffed and went into her closet to change.

--

Derek awoke to small slaps on his cheek, "Derek? Wake up." He opened his eyes to a slight chuckling Casey, "The whole napping thing…I didn't know it was your style, Grampa."

He rolled his eyes and decided to get her back, "Trust me it's only fun when you have a cuddle buddy. I missed mine very much and naps are just much less enjoyable these days."

"Shut up, please," she groaned while grabbing his hand and pulling him off the bed. "I kinda got you something too."

Derek scrunched up his nose into that big ball of happy again, "Aw," he pinched her cheek, "my wife got me a gift."

"Der-ek!" he stopped, "It's over there on my dresser."

He got up and opened the plastic bag; his eyes grew wide, "Cas-Casey, I thought you were kidding about these." He turned around holding a pair of scissors still in its package. Casey fell back on her bed in hysterics, "Casey, this isn't funny."

She sat up and settled down, "That's not what I got you, you dolt. It's the box next to it." He opened it, "You know… those scissors are for the next time you do something stupid."

He turned his head and shot her a look, "Ha-Ha." The box was opened and it was those same pair of sunglasses, "Aw," he turned around and smiled sarcastically, "it's the sunglasses you viciously _yanked_ off my face."

She rolled her eyes, "Yes, that one and don't worry it's a whole new pair. It was sort of my peace offering but you kept hiding like a little bitch."

"Hey!" he frowned.

"Just kidding," he sat down next to her and put them on, "What are you doing?"

"I happen to know I look pretty dang fly, don't you think?" he smirked to himself and didn't even await a retort from her, "I think I'll wear them tonight!" he said excitedly.

Casey sneered, "I swear if you wear them tonight I am--"

"Going to yank them off my face, throw them on the floor, and then feel guilty enough to buy me a new pair?" he bit his lip to contain his laughter. Without another word, Casey got up and went over to her dresser, "Wh-what are you doing over there, Casey?"

She took the scissors out of its package, "Derek Venturi, drop 'em."

He started to pace backwards as she stalked toward him, "You know, when I heard you say it in my dream, this was _not_ the scenario I saw."

"You _dreamt_ about this?" He laughed nervously. "Wrong answer! Get over here!" he ran away from her.

"ABUSE!"

* * *

**Gah. These two...they make me tired. They make me lose my funny, don't you agree? haha.  
**

**Next chapter. Their night out. What'll happen...still "Friends?" **

**hmm... review so I can figure it out. ;)**


	10. Innuendo

**AN: So update...Disney is going to play season 4 of LWD for the US. Hooray Hooray!**

**This was originally a part of the last chapter but blah...it was too long all together. It went through splitsville.  
**

**Random.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything...especially that hot british piece of meat: David Beckham. RrrrR. **

* * *

"So is that Rent movie really about people with AIDS?" Sam asked.

"Ugh," Gina groaned, "Who cares, it's just a bunch of gay people bangin' on pots and pans."

"Really?"

"No," Emily shook her head at the random conversations her friends seem to get into, "She's thinking of that play Stom--" Gina started tapping her shoulder in a _very_ annoying fashion, "What?"

"You see that, Emily," Gina continued as they all brought their eyes to watch their married friends laughing as they came through the door, "that is _not_ 'Friends' that's…"

"…a guy who got shot down by our idiot girlfriend who is too stubborn to just admit she feels something too?" Emily said rapidly, trying to catch her breath in the process.

"Exactly."

"Hey guys," Casey greeted as she and Derek approached the table consisting solely of their friends.

The three of them just sat and smiled at them. Grinning like total idiots without even speaking a word. Derek furrowed a brow, "Okay?" He shook his head and looked at Casey, "Wanna go grab a drink?"

"Sure." She smiled then brought her eyes back to her three girlfriends, yes Sam is three, "Focus your minds on something new, please?" without waiting for an idiotic response, she and Derek quickly went over to the bar.

Gina snorted aloud as they walked away, "Why do I have a feeling that tonight's the night?"

"Goodness," Sam broke out into laughter, "You think every day is the day. You think every night is the night." Both girls narrowed their eyes at him and he settled his laughter, "It is the truth. Can't you guys accept that it might just never happen? That _I_, for once, will win this bet…even though I already gave up the money."

"Well," Emily let bit her lip in thought, "I mean what else can happen now? We've got the one who has the feelings; we got a dense one who rejected him; they are back to being friends. It's only a matter of time, right?"

Gina nodded in agreement, "Emily Davis, you are very right. How _you_ aren't the psych major is beyond me."

"Well Child Development is like Derek and Casey central." She shrugged, "So it works."

Sam and Gina both nodded in agreement.

--

"Order whatever you want. It's on me." He grabbed his wallet out and she just smiled at him, "Wh-what, Casey? You know you make me feel all weird when you actually smile? I'm so used to seeing you angry or scary or your hands about to smack me. But this," he pinched her cheeks to tease, "kinda weird."

She smacked his hand away to which he had to laugh, "I'm smiling because you can be quite the gentleman sometimes."

He ordered their drinks and snorted toward her, "Yeah, I guess you don't like guys who are quite the gentleman, huh?"

Her face fell, "Der--"

"Just kidding, Casey, cheer up. I'm over it, remember?" he looked around the lounge at all the women, "There's a lot of new meat for me anyway." He brought his eyes to sneak a glance at a wrinkled nose Casey. His smirk was back with a vengeance, "Uh-huh…so you _don't_ like me talking about other girls. You, Casey, are _very_ hard to understand."

"I _don't _care…" she retorted, "You can look at other girls because we're just friends remember?"

Derek was unconvinced, "So, say, I go over to that chick right there…" he pointed to the scantily clad blonde behind her. Casey shared his line of vision and he saw her shudder, "and I go and hit on her. That wouldn't make you the least bit upset?"

"Not at all," she muttered through her teeth.

"Alright," he downed some of his beer and got off his stool, "I'll go then…" just as he was about to walk away he felt her hand on his elbow, he smirked and turned around to look at her, "You're very difficult, you know that?"

He brought himself back onto the stool, "I'll admit I'd be very upset, okay?" He grinned at her admittance. "Are you happy now?"

"Fan-f-ing-tastic."

"Don't be so smug, Derek Venturi, it's the same principle as that night with the hermaphrodite bullshit you pulled on me."

He smacked his leg in hysterical laughter, "It _is_ the same principle. I'm not denying it because I already told you how I felt. You're the difficult one remember?"

"Yeah, yeah." She took a sip of her martini, "Who knows," she shrugged and had an impulse run through her as she got off her stool. She got a little closer to his ear, "Maybe next time I won't be so difficult."

Derek felt his eyes fluttered close as she whispered those eight words in his ear and once he opened it she was already walking back to their table. He shook his head and shrugged off the shiver that went through his body. "Dammit," he sighed and took another gulp of his beer, "Since when was I the girl in this relationship?"

--

"That David Beckham _is_ hot, Derek." Gina muttered in Derek's face, "You're just jealous because both you and Sam combined couldn't even _be_ on the same level of hotness as that hot British piece of meat." Sam glared at her, "Are you seriously starting again?"

"Oh, come on, Sammy." Derek put on his most assuring voice, "You have nothing to worry about anything because once he opens his mouth, he sounds like a chick."

"Ugh!" Gina threw a stare over to Casey, "Help me out, here, Casey! David Beckham is the hottest thing on this earth!" She wrinkled her nose in thought, "Damn those Americans for stealing him!"

Casey drew in a reluctant breath, "I'm sorry, Gina, but I'm going to have to side with my Husband on this." Derek smirked at her to which she gave him a smile back, "Yeah," she nodded and looked back at an eyebrow raised Gina, "He's definitely hot but the voice! He sounds like Sam when he's crying."

Sam groaned, "Seriously. You and Derek. Why?"

Derek and Casey smiled innocently. Gina's eyes narrowed at her married friends, especially at Casey, "And you," Casey pointed to herself, "Yeah, you. Since when do you side with Derek instead of me? Since when did _Derek_ become your BFF?"

"Aw," Casey teased, "Are you jealous?"

She scoffed, sat back and let out a huff toward them, "Not at all."

Derek crossed his arms and it was his turn to join in the teasing, "Yeah, Case. I think she's jealous." Gina buried her head in her arms as they rested on the table.

Casey was in hysterics and she felt exhilarated to be the one on the other end of the normal teasing, "Gina, I'm just kidding. I still love you more than I tolerate Derek." Gina lifted her head to reveal a beaming face while Derek gave Casey a pout. "Agh! You two are like children that need constant attention!"

Derek laughed and got closer to her ear to whisper, "Casey?" and this time it was Casey who felt her eyes fluttering closed with his breath so closed to her ear.

"Ye-yeah?"

"You want another drink?" Casey quickly snapped out of her mini trance and shook her head. "You sure?"

"Yep," she smiled.

Derek nudged Sam, "Come on, Sammy. Let's go get more." They got up and left.

It was just Gina and Casey left at the table, "Casey," Gina let out a laugh, "no more drinks? You literally had one. I thought it was our plan to get smashed when we graduated?"

Casey let out a laugh and shook her head, "I think after Vegas, I'm never going to get smashed. I'm not planning to be in anymore drunken marriages, thank you. I don't want to be that Serial Drunken Marrying Lady."

"Who the hell called you that?"

Casey smiled in thought, "Derek." Her eyes focused back on Gina, who had a suspicious eyebrow raised. Clearing her throat, Casey decided it was time to change the subject of her smiling ways. She looked around the place, "Where's Em? I swear she like goes off and explores the world without telling us."

"That's Emily for you." Gina inquired as she pointed over at the bar, "She's getting her drink on with that guy."

Casey looked behind her and chuckled at her desperately single friend, "Go Em." She turned back to see a smirking Gina, "Wh-what?" Casey stammered with a nervous laugh. That smirk always made her nervous, "Why are you always looking at me like that?"

Gina took a sip of her drink and smirked some more, "You and Derek are looking pretty cozy again. Sharing drinks together at the bar. Whispering sweet nothings into one another's ear." Gina was still determined to make this work and she knew if Emily wasn't getting her mack on, she'd be helping her right now.

"We totally were _not_ whispering sweet nothings into one another's ear!"

"Yeah," she snorted, "And I'm not already buzzed."

"Are you still on this?" Casey shook her head to assure her for the billionth time, "We're friends. We talked earlier and we decided not to push anything because drama happens when we push something we're not ready for." She was a bit quiet, "I'm not ready for." Swirling her little stick in her drink, Casey sighed in thought, "I like being his friend. I like laughing…I hate being all angry and sad and stuff…and…" suddenly she heard Young MC's "Bust A Move" come and suddenly stuff started to flutter back. "I know this song…You want it…You got it…" she sang a little bit of it.

"From where?" Gina raised an eyebrow.

"My first dance with my husband…"

- - - -

"_Derek! Where is we goin!!" Casey whined and he held her hand. _

_Derek was dragging her to God knows where, "Hold on, babe!" Finally they went over to little area where they heard music playing. "Casey! Let's dance! So it can be magical, remember?!" She nodded and he brought her to the dance floor where there were loads of people dancing, "Case! Bust A Move!!" he got excited as he pulled her closer._

"_You wannnnn it…you gotsss it…" Casey started singing as they danced in the most drunken ridiculous way ever. _

"_Jusss bussss ta movee!" Derek yelled out as he danced closer to her. "I LIKE THIS SONG CASEY!" he yelled._

_She smacked his shoulder and arched her eyebrows, "STOP YELLING AT ME!"_

"_SORRY!"_

"_IT'S OKAY, BABE!" she wrapped his arms around his neck, "Give me kissys!" _

_Derek leaned down and gave her a bunch of kisses. Pulling back reluctantly, he yelled out to everyone, "EVERYONE! I JUST GOT MARRIED! THISSSS IS MAH WIFE! PEOPLE!" The people in the lounge were pretty encouraging as they gave the newlyweds applause. He looked back at Casey and gave her another kiss. Derek was able to become serious for a second, "I love you, Casey."_

_"Yeah," Casey: the same, "I love you, too." She leaned and gave him more kisses as they slow danced to another fast song. _

"_I wonder when we'll get our powers?" he whispered next to her ear._

_Casey scrunched up her nose in thought, "I don--"_

"_Excuse me, are you two the newlyweds?" a hotel employee came up to interrupt their "magical" conversation._

"_YEAH, WE ARE!" Derek announced excitedly while Casey nodded along. _

"_Well, that gentleman over there," he pointed to the old man sitting in the booth, "he wanted to give you this as a wedding present." He handed them a hotel card to a suite upstairs. _

"_What's this? A credit card?" Casey looked at it with confusion._

_The employee laughed and shook his head, "No, it's a room upstairs for your wedding night. It's on the 40__th__ floor; Room : 4430. It's right here." He pointed to the pamphlet that showed them their room. Congratulations on your marriage and thank you for staying at Planet Hollywood Hotel."_

_Derek and Casey observed the card as it were a foreign object. He turned to look at the old man, "THANKS MONOPOLY GUY!" Derek looked down over at Casey, "Come on, Case!"_

"_Let's go! Let's go!!" Derek and Casey literally ran to an elevator._

_--_

_They stayed on the elevator for longer than they should have due to the fact that they kept making out in it. Finally they found the right floor and headed over to their room. Derek was having a hard time getting the card in the entry slot the right way and Casey was getting annoyed. "Babe, hurry up!" she still had her arms around his neck; still planting kisses on his face that it was what distracted him from opening the door._

"_Casey, I can't get it to open!" Casey groaned and snatched the card out of his hand and opened it herself with ease. She turned back and grinned at him with a triumphant grin. Casey was about to walk in but Derek stopped her. Instead he picked her up bridal style and kicked open the door. Unfortunately for Casey, Drunk Derek didn't have a good sense of direction and accidently bumped her head on the side of the doorway. "I'm sorry."_

"_Is okay."_

_He immediately brought her over to the bed and gave her a bunch of kisses. _

_Not too long after that came: the consummation._

- - - -

"Casey?" she felt Derek's breath right next to her ear. Immediately it ran shivers through her body at his proximity and at the fact that their consummation just danced through her mind. She felt a bit dirty for thinking about it.

"Yeah?"

"Dance with me." He didn't even wait for a response instead he grabbed her hands and brought her onto the dance floor.

Gina rested her chin in the palm of her hand and watched as Derek and Casey got closer to one another, "Pssh…" she scoffed, "Friends my ass."

--

"I like this song, Casey." Derek told her as he twirled her and Casey remembered he said the same exact thing in Vegas.

Casey let out a laugh because she could see he was just as excited now as he was back then, "Derek, I remember this song when we were in Vegas."

He stopped and raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Yeah," she nodded, "we were dancing at that lounge over at the hotel. It was our first dance as husband and wife. Then a nice old man gave us a room for our wedding night. You also were the one that gave me the bump on the side of my head that morning." She saw no expression change on Derek's face and immediately she knew, "You knew all of this didn't you?"

He smiled innocently, "Don't rip my ears off, please." He begged and thought a good joke would come in handy at the moment, "I love my ears so I can listen to my wife's beautiful voice."

Casey shook her head and let out a laugh, "You're lucky we're in public because…"

"…if we were at home or something you'd rip them off." He muttered as he finished her sentence.

Casey pinched his cheeks and gave him a cheeky smile, "You got it." They kept their slow swaying as the song became a much slower one.

She smiled at him as her eyes met his, never moving and she thought about him. Standing there swaying slowly side to side, she thought about him and everything that was starting to happen with them. How things were a lot more than friendly between them and it now really started to hit her. Yeah, now she could actually admit she was dense and right now as she stared at him, she could still hear him saying those three words to her. She could even hear their earlier talking at the bar.

"What's on your mind?"

Casey knew she shouldn't do it but she felt like she had to. All the thoughts and images running through her mind as her eyes searched his. "So you remember that night right?" Derek nodded, "You remember what you said to me when we were dancing?"

Derek laughed as he recalled the hilarious drunken memory that was their first dance as Husband and Wife, "Yeah, that I like this song and how I yelled at everyone in the room that you're my wife? The Monopoly Guy?" Casey shook her head and immediately she saw Derek's face pale. "Uh…then I don't know."

Just then Casey felt the need to smile sincerely at him because she knew what was running through his mind. The next thing she found herself doing was bringing her arms up to wrap around his neck…in a good way.

--

"Emily! Emily! Emily!!" Gina shrieked with excitement.

Emily turned her attention away from her male friend and gave Gina an annoyed glare, "Can't you see I'm in the--" Gina grabbed her face and turned it in the direction of their married friends. "Oh, holy shit." She turned and looked at her male friend once more, "Hey. It was nice talking to you. You have my number. Call me." She hopped off her chair and they took a better seat where they could watch what would happen.

--

Derek blushed all of a sudden, "He-hey, there Case. What are you doing?" he let out a nervous laugh. This was the last thing he thought would be happening. Even their conversation at the bar didn't lead him to think she would be doing this. She strongly pleaded her case and stressed the fact that they should be friends at the moment. He was totally opposed to it and what she was doing now was making him even more opposed to this stupid friends idea. And he seriously hoped she wasn't just messing with him again.

"Did you mean it?" she searched his eyes again. "Did you mean what you said?"

He fixed his look away from her eyes, "I don't know." Merely shrugging in thought, "We were really drunk."

She had a slight grin form as her hand made its way in fixing his look back on her, "So you _do_ know what I'm talking about." He nodded slowly and Casey just couldn't help herself anymore. She wasn't leading him on or sending mixed signals. She knew exactly what she was doing now, "Derek, it's okay, you can put your arms around my waist. I know you want to."

He didn't have to be told twice. Bringing his arms gently around her waist, Derek pulled her a bit closer to him and he felt all tingly being so close to her.

--

Emily and Gina just had a mini-heart attack

"See Em, I knew tonight was the night."

"I wasn't disagreeing with you. That was--"

"What's goi--"

"Shh!!" Emily and Gina both expressed loudly. Gina grabbed Sam's arm and pulled him to sit and watch what they were watching.

"Oh…" Sam let out, "I see now."

--

"Casey, what happened to friends only?" he thought he should ask. He wanted to be sure this was something she knew she was doing. Casey merely shrugged and it wasn't helping Derek understand her intentions, "Are you sure you're not drunk or something?"

Casey shook her head and had a tight smile creep up on the corner of her lips, "No, Derek, I'm actually in the right state of mind. No alcohol. No interruptions. No pulling back. Just," she shrugged, "us."

He nodded slowly, just focusing his eyes on hers. He read them and it was telling him something he'd been waiting to hear ever since those weird feelings took over him, "Just us," he said quietly between them.

Derek could see her breathing becoming more erratic and the next thing he felt was his face being pulled toward hers. The No PDA rule was out the window and he could care less about who was watching.

--

"Oh my God…" Sam started.

"…here it is…" continued Gina.

"…the kiss!" Emily finished.

--

Casey gently brushed her lips on his and this time she knew. She knew this time it felt right and she didn't want it to stop. Those unsure feelings became clear feelings. She was dense no more. It was finally a kiss that both of them could clearly feel with one another and it was perfect. It was their first _real_ kiss. For Casey, all she felt was his surprisingly soft lips meetings hers and the tingly and shivering feelings were in an outpour throughout her body. Never had someone had this much of impact on her during any of her previous kisses.

Derek Venturi has had a lot of lips that he'd kissed before but there was something about kissing Casey right here right now that made it memorable. Maybe it was the fact that she was never someone he could have. It could also be the fact that she'd been someone he really found himself to be happy around. It was all that and the fact that she was Casey Venturi, the one person that he'd been so crazy about since God knows when and this time she really wasn't rejecting him.

Derek pulled her closer as his hand slowly made its way up and gently ran in her hair; the other cupping her face from the side.

Casey didn't know if the things they did in Vegas meant anything but she knew this right here? This right here meant everything to her and she sorta had a feeling that it meant a lot to Derek too. Yeah, it meant the world to Derek.

--

"Okay, _now_ my life is complete." Gina proclaimed

Emily nodded in agreement, "Totally."

Sam couldn't do anything but his shake head at the girls.

--

Derek pulled back and felt the need to just hug her, holding her tighter as he gave her a quick kiss on the head, "Casey?"

"Mhmm?" she mumbled against him.

"Does this mean…"

"Yeah, Derek," pulling back as she nodded with a fitting smile, "I guess I kinda like you too." Stealing one of his smirks, "Told you I wouldn't be difficult the next time."

He couldn't hold it in, "Just the time after that, right?" she smacked his shoulder, "Hey!" he brought his hands up to gently cup her face, "You know what they say…" he whispered right in front of her.

"Wh-what?" she breathed as her eyes fluttered closed.

"Girls hit boys because they like 'em."

She smiled with her eyes still closed, "Well I guess I've liked you all along then."

"I knew it." He leaned and closed the space that separated their lips and pulled her in for another kiss to which he mumbled against her, "You wanna get out of here?"

"Yes. Please."

--

Their three friends watched as they fled the scene. "I wonder where they're going…" Sam asked aloud.

Gina stared at him in disbelief then made her way to look at Emily, who shook her head and raised her hands in defense, "Don't look at me. That's _your_ boyfriend."

Sam didn't even hear the girls talking behind them. He was still trying to figure it out. "Aw man!" he turned around and stared at the girls, "They're going to play Rock Band aren't they?"

"Sure, baby," Gina smiled sarcastically, "Derek's going to bang his sticks on Casey's drums."

Emily leaned over, "I can't believe you just said that."

"You know how I love me some innuendos."

* * *

**I can hear it...I can hear the Hallelujah Chorus! **

**There's your Dasey...now what? What's gonna happen now? Hmm...**

**Reviews will get me going...so, yeah, press the pretty button...it thinks your hot. **


	11. Checking Her Earrings

**AN: I'm glad most of you guys get my sense of humor lol. And all I can say is you all are the most amazzzingest people evar! ;) Oh and sorry for my slow updates...math... gah!  
**

**Did anyone else get excited when Casey dumped the fakebake in Allergy Season? I know I almost cried happy tears. lawl. Ugh...max. yuck.**

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned.**

* * *

Casey awoke with the feel of lips on hers and she knew just whose they belonged to. For the past few weeks she knew exactly whose they belonged to. For the past few weeks everything was just perfect. They were having a blast being together and there was no drama that they had to deal with. They expressed that they felt something for one another and it was just great. A part of her felt even more stupid for taking this long to realize she wanted to be with him. Yeah she was smart but sometimes not the smartest when it came to guys and feelings.

For Derek, he was absolutely crazy about her. Sure he fantasized for awhile about what it would be like to have an actual relationship with her but for the past few weeks it was amazing. It was like having your best friend around you all the time except with this best friend, he had those benefits…and he sure as hell wasn't complaining about them. Casey was always a difficult and challenging person to him but right now? She was his equal…who still occasionally _was_ difficult and challenging.

Neither of them brought up the situation they were still in and what they would have to deal with in six months. Derek sort of wanted to ask her about it and Casey knew this so she tried her hardest to avoid the talk. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do and what Derek would want to do. They were having a great time and she just didn't want to touch on that. At least not yet.

She smiled against his lips and pulled him closer to her, "Jeez, Casey, can't take your hands off of me for one second," he joked.

She pushed him off and scoffed, "_You're_ the one that keeps kissing me while I'm sleeping!" He started laughing and she couldn't help but join in his laugh. "You always do this to me!" she jokingly whined.

"Because it's fun!" he threw a lazy hand over her waist and pulled her closer, "You know how much I love to mentally abuse my wife."

She smacked his shoulder, "And you know how much I love to physically abuse my husband."

Derek chuckled and pulled her in for another kiss, "But I like doing this much better…" he mumbled. They were interrupted by Casey's cell phone ringing. "Ignore it." He mumbled once more. Casey pulled back and grabbed her phone to which he groaned, "That's the opposite of what I said to do."

Casey gave him a quick peck and answered it, "Hey Mom. Yeah. Yeah. I'm fine. Okay, sure. Dinner? Sure. Bye Mom." She hung up and looked at Derek, "They want us over for dinner." Derek rolled his eyes jokingly, "George is probably going to call you ne--" Derek's phone rang.

Derek sighed at how he hated being interrupted during these morning moments with his wife. He reached over to answer it, "Hey Dad. Yeah, I know. Dinner tonight? Casey just told me. Yup, that girl just couldn't wait to tell me. It's like she's obsessed with telling me everything." Casey glared and he chuckled lightly at her, "Yup. K, Dad. Bye." He hung up and looked at Casey, "I guess we're going to dinner tonight. But first," he pulled her closer and started to nuzzle her neck, "cuddle buddy time!"

"De-REK!" she shrieked.

--

The four friends sat eating breakfast just like every morning Casey would sleep over the night before. She was getting used to coming over often and eating with her friends and her husband. She hardly slept at home anymore. There was something about coming over every night that just made their relationship much more fun. He'd always come over prior to this and now she felt it was only fair that she'd bother him on his turf…well he was never bothered by her appearance…he encouraged it.

Derek loved that Casey always came over that way he didn't have to keep driving over to her place. That was still the lazy in him. He never really questioned why they never went over there and after a few weeks he decided to bring it up.

He had an arm around her chair as he sipped his coffee, "Hey, Case?" She looked over at him, "Not like I'm complaining or anything… but why don't we ever sleep over at your apartment? I kind of miss your drooly pillows and your comfy sheets."

"Whatever," she snorted, "You just don't like me drooling on your things."

"Not disagreeing with you..." he coughed out jokingly to which that little comment had him receive a little glare from her, "So why not?"

She shrugged, "I don't know. I guess I just like coming here."

Derek snorted, "Oh come on. I know for a fact that you miss your room because you say how dirty mine is compared to yours."

"Ugh!" she groaned in thought. His dirty room always got her worked up, "Well can't I complain when you have dirty clothes all over the ground? Shirts, your jeans, your so--" Casey quieted down and realized all eyes were on her like it usually was when she had an outburst, "What's with the third degree?" Sam and Gina sat there blankly as these two started to go at it. Both watched and now they knew how it felt when people watched them fighting. They were intrigued.

Derek shrugged, "Nothing, I was just wonder why we never go over there. I mean come on, Casey. I used to come over all the time and now it's like the other way around." Derek raised an eyebrow, "You got a secret guy over there? Are you committing adultery? Huh? Huh?" Casey just couldn't help herself; she had to bust out into laughter. She thought his jealously was kind of cute on him; this only caused him to frown, "Casey!" he whined, "Who? Who is it?!"

Casey pinched his cheeks and looked over at Sam and Gina, who snapped out of their trance once they knew Casey was actually paying attention to them, "Ain't my husband so cute." Instead of answering, they just stared blankly some more.

Derek narrowed his eyes at his wife, "Am I going to have to put a permanent sign on your back that tells people you're a hermaphrodite again?" Once he finished talking he felt a hard smack on the back of his head, "Hey!" he pouted.

Casey glared at him with those evil blue eyes of hers, "You're the reason why guys would avoid or laugh at me when I was at school, you asshole."

Derek bit his lip to control the laughter that came with his masterpiece of a plan. Probably one of his greatest gigs to date, "Well good." She raised an eyebrow, "You shouldn't have other guys looking at you."

"Jealous!" Gina coughed out from behind her coffee mug. Sam and Derek both glared at her and she smiled innocently, "I mean…" all eyes were on her, "Uhh…I mean…" she decided to change the subject off her, "Yeah, Casey why _doesn't_ Derek go over to your place." Casey immediately threw her a glare to which Gina gave her an apologetic smile while she mouthed "Sorry."

Derek rolled his eyes and awaited an answer to which Casey sighed to, "I don't want you coming over because of Lindsay." Sam and Gina got into this discussion once more and all they could think about was where the popcorn was when they needed it.

Derek wrinkled his nose, "I told you I don't like that girl. Come on," he decided to pinch her cheeks this time to annoy her, "Aww…is my wife jealous of the roommate?"

She _was_ annoyed. Casey smacked his hand away and scoffed, "No. It's not that at all. It's the fact that I'm not as close to her as I am," she motioned Sam and Gina, "you guys and Emily. She has no idea about us and she knows you're my step-brother. She'll think it's weird. And yes, I have issues when people don't like me or talk shit about me. So there, there's your answer. I come here and I like it that way." Casey subconsciously ripped her toast into little pieces as she muttered quietly, "Plus…she still has a huge crush on you."

Derek grinned and gave her a quick peck, "Too bad I hasssss a crush on you."

Casey giggled while Gina sighed and smacked Sam on the shoulder, "Why can't you be more like that?!" Sam frowned.

--

"Derek could you perhaps," she shrugged, "share the drums?!"

He snorted and banged his drums louder. "You don't know how to play drums, Casey. Stick to singing and learning to master the guitar _then_ you can touch my stick…s." He busted out into laughter.

She shook her head and let out a laugh at his perverted act, "You are such a perv."

"Damn straight." He retorted quickly and went back to playing while Casey was getting annoyed with him hogging and decided to work somethings to her advantage. She came up behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist, bringing herself to give him a kiss on the cheek. "What are you doing?" he smirked.

"What? I can't give my husband some lovin'?" she mumbled against his skin.

He turned and pulled her closer to him. Once Casey heard the dropping of the sticks, she pulled back and grabbed them off the floor, "Hey!" she flaunted the sticks in front of him. "You totally took advantage of me, Casey." He expressed in mock complaint.

"Well if you weren't such a perv then this wouldn't have happened." She beamed brightly at him and bumped him off his chair with her hip, "Now get up so I can try!"

Derek wrinkled his nose and got up so she could sit. He watched as Casey attempted to the get rhythm right. It was time to be his good old annoying self…he was already being sweet to her…it was time for a good yell or smack from his wife, "You gotta _hit_ the drums at the right time, Casey." She banged them harder and groaned out at her lack of success on the drums, "You suck. Suck. Suck. Suck. Su--" he sang. The next thing he saw was a drumstick flying toward his direction. Lucky for him he had the reflex of a cat…except when it came to Casey's hits. "HEY!" he furrowed frightened eyebrows.

Casey's eyes widened as she turned to look at his frightened state, "Oh my God, Derek, I'm so sorry! You just kept talking and I couldn't hit it right." She walked over to him as he shielded himself from her, "Derek!" she whined, "I'm sorry!"

"Get away!" he cried out jokingly and yelled out, "ABUSE!!"

"Derek!" she unhooked his arms from around him, "I'm sorry…" she pouted.

He stopped his mock whining and pulled her onto the couch, "One of these days you're really going to kill me."

"Can't…" he started to nuzzle her neck and her eyes were fluttering close as those tingly feelings that she was becoming all too familiar with came, "I like you too much." Without another word his lips met hers where she forcefully returned it.

Gina cleared her throat and a startled Derek and Casey broke apart. She grinned, "So…it looks like a normal Saturday afternoon for The Venturi's."

Sam came out of the room and coughed out a laugh, "Yeah, if Saturday afternoons consisted of acting like love-sick bunnies."

"Oh! Ha-Ha!" Derek let out sarcastically and looked over at Casey, "Sammy's grown some balls!"

Sam rolled his eyes, "Come on, baby, let's go."

"Where you guys going?" Casey asked as comfortably cuddled with her husband.

"I want to take Sam to get a pe--" Sam cleared his throat really loud and dragged complaining Gina out the door.

"Weird."

"Totally."

--

"I'm gonna have to say...guys getting kicked in the nuts probably hurts more…"

"From what I hear it's giving birth…"

"Whatever it's totally get--"

"Shut up!" They stood in front of their parent's door that night. Casey looked at him, "Okay, time to put on an act."

Derek sighed at her repetitive words that he kept hearing as if he were an idiot, "I know, Casey. I'm not asking for a death wish."

Casey wrinkled her nose with worry, "You really think they'd kill us if they knew?" Derek chuckled at how red she was becoming and decided to clear her of her thoughts by pulling her closer by the waist, "What are you doing?"

He grinned, "We're not inside yet…" Casey mirrored his grin and leaned closer for a kiss. How these kisses managed to work shivering wonders on them, they'd never know. Both were startled by the door opening and they quickly pulled apart to see an eyebrow furrowed Marti, "Hey, Smarti!" he looked at Casey, "I was…uh…" he needed to think of something and his eyes focused on Casey's ears, "I was just checking her earrings. Yeah! I was just checking Casey's earrings." Both Casey and Marti arched their eyebrows at his stupidity.

Casey shook her head and cleared her throat loudly as she brought her attention on Marti, "He was checking to see if my earring fell off." She laughed nervously, bringing her hand up to her ear to make it more convincing, "It's still here so I guess it didn't."

Marti still had her eyebrows furrowed, "Well couldn't you have just reached up with your own hand and felt if it was there?"

Casey felt stupid, "That's a terrific idea, Marti! I'll definitely try that one next time. Come on. Let's go in and eat dinner!" Marti turned and walked toward the kitchen while Casey immediately smacked Derek's shoulder, "Checking my earrings?!" she screamed in a whisper. "What is it with you and my earrings?! First I found you holding them up to your own--" it was his turn to cover her mouth with his hand.

"That was all I could think of on the spot!"

"Hm," Casey let out in mock disappointment then scoffed, "And they call _you_ Lord of the Lies…"

Derek glared, "Get in the damned house, already!"

--

Nora asked, "So what's new with you two?"

"Nothing." "Nothing." They both said as they poked at their food.

"You never told us about your trip to Las Vegas." George brought up and quickly Derek and Casey coughed out loud.

Casey cleared her throat and looked around the table where all eyes were on her, "It was a blast. Dinner, a little gambling, and some shopping. I mean everything was perfect just like I planned it."

George raised an unconvinced eyebrow, "Even when Derek came along?"

Derek scoffed at his father's accusations, "Hey! I was a gentleman to the birthday girl." George dropped his fork on his plate and crossed his arms, giving Derek that same eyebrow. Derek groaned, "Is it hard to believe that I can actually be nice to Casey?" Derek looked around at everyone's unconvinced faces and immediately he threw Casey a look for assistance, "Casey, help me out here!"

Casey was in hysterics, hardly able to choke out the words or even think straight, "You're on your own, Hubby--" Casey's eyes grew wide and Derek's reciprocated.

Nora dropped her eating utensils, as well, at what she just heard. "Excuse me?" she questioned seriously.

Casey looked around at everyone's faces. She blushed with the pressure of the stares and laughed nervously, "Uh… Derek and I have this joke where we call one another stupid names. I call him Hubby and he calls me…uh…" she stammered, "he calls me…" she threw Derek a stare and now was the best time for him to come up with something on the spot.

"Wife," Derek laughed to convince them of this fake joke, "Yeah. Yeah! She calls me Hubby and I call her Wife. It's a joke we have going. It's quite hilarious actually. I mean at first it was weird because, you know, Wife and Hubby…it was just weird but it caught on. Now we just can't stop calling each other Hubby and Wife. Funny right?!" Derek kept laughing and only hoped everyone would just agree.

He fetched Casey a look and she caught on and started to laugh too, "Yeah! Derek is Hubby! Funny, huh?!" She looked around and finally everyone laughed along. "See, funny right?!" Casey continued and threw a serious glance at Derek then managed to laugh along with everyone again.

"Oh man!" Nora choked out a laugh, "I was afraid you two were going to say you got married in Vegas or something." She continued laughing.

"And that's why you guys call one another that!" George laughed some more.

Derek and Casey both stared at one another and shook their heads.

--

"That was close." Casey muttered as she dried a dish Derek handed to her.

Derek looked around and they were alone as their parents made their way into the basement, "Yeah that was." He grinned and snuck a quick kiss. Casey looked around too and decided to go get herself another kiss and this time it was a lot longer and a lot more heated. Her back was against the sink as she brought her arms up to wrap around his neck. Their hormones had a mind of its own because neither cared or even remembered where they were exactly. Well, they would be reminded soon enough. Not too long after their heated make-out-in-kitchen session went on, that they heard a clearing of the throat. They stopped and knew they were caught. Derek pulled his head back and looked directly at Casey, "Case? Wh-who is it?"

Casey could see the terror in his face and she was terrified too. She slowly tilted her head to the side and saw Marti standing behind them with her arms crossed. "It's Marti," she whispered.

Derek took a deep breath and decided to try and figure out how this'll work. He slowly turned and smiled brightly at Marti, "Hey-Hey, Marti. My favorite sister."

Marti had a little smirk of her own and looked at Casey, "You sure about that, Smerek?" Derek found her joking as a good sign that Marti won't say a word. Derek came over and gave her gigantic hug. "Smerek! You're squeezing the life out of me."

"You won't say anything, Marti, right?" Casey asked her with a bit a terror in her voice.

Marti shook her head to assure them, "No but this is the second time I've seen Derek 'Checking your earrings' so cool it down or else the third time you're caught it won't be me. Okay?" Derek and Casey nodded rapidly. Taking a seat on the stools that sat in front of the island counter, Marti needed to ask, "So, I have to ask…"

"Anything," Derek told her as he and Casey took a seat on the stools in front of her.

Marti looked between the both of them, "You guys really are married, aren't you?" Derek and Casey shared a look and they both nodded toward Marti, "Well don't hold out on me. What really happened in Vegas?"

"Well Marti, there's still some stuff that me and Derek can't remember but we can tell you what we do know." She offered and Marti nodded. "Okay…where do we start?"

--

"…we made our drunken calls to Emily, Sam, and Gina." They all laughed at the memory, "Then we went on our way to the…" Casey arched her eyebrows in thought then realization came upon her face as she glanced over to Derek, "chapel—Hey! I remember our wedding ceremony!"

Derek smirked, "Really?"

"Yeah," her eyebrows furrowed, "Magic? Magical?"

He started to laugh, "Magical Powers?"

"That's the one!" Casey then shook her head at just how crazy they were, "Magical Powers…what the hell did we drink?!"

"Beats me."

- - - -

_Derek leaned down and gave her a bunch of kisses to which she smiled brightly at, "Casey?"_

_She pulled back and looked up at him, "Yess?"_

"_You really wanta be married to mes right?" The slur was still there. _

_Casey beamed, "Of course! I told you!"_

_He gave her another kiss, "I knows! I knows!" he laughed, "Im jusss makin sure, k?" she nodded, "Well less go!"_

_The bartender looked over at them as they walked away, "I guess they don't want their beers anymore?"_

_--_

_Elvis sang his best impression of Real Elvis's "Fools Rush In" while Casey and Derek were getting annoyed with how long it was taking. He kept circling around the couple and occasionally touching Casey's arm. Derek wasn't too happy about it. Luckily for Elvis, he finally finished and Derek quietly unclenched the fist that formed. Finally it was time to start and the engaged to be married couple got really excited again, "Marriage is a joyous occasion…" the Minister started, "It's connected in our hearts with the magic charm…"_

"_Casey…" Derek whispered from next to her. _

_She turned her head and looked at her fiancé, "What?" she whispered back._

"_What the hell's he talkin' bout?" they tuned out their Minister. _

_She shrugged, "Something about magic I think. I heard magic and," she raised an eyebrow as she thought, "potions. I think he said potions and hearts. Something like that." Casey suddenly got excited to where neither of them even listened to what Minister was saying was saying anymore, "Maybe when we're married we'll have magical powers!"_

_Derek couldn't believe it. He put his free hand over his mouth and gasped, "Really?!" she nodded rapidly to convince him, "Oh my God! Casey, we're going to have magical powers!!" he screamed in a whisper. _

"_PLEASE TURN TO EACH OTHER AND HOLD HANDS!" The Minister had to yell the 5__th__ time for Casey and Derek to snap out of their own worlds and turn to one another. "You Derek take this lady Casey, that you now hold by the hand, to be your wedded wife…" Derek went dozing off again while the thoughts of magical powers plagued his mind. "DO YOU TAKE THIS LADY?!"_

_He was shaken out of his thoughts; his eyes still on Casey's, to which he rapidly nodded, "I DO! I LOVE YOU CASEY!" he yelled. _

_Casey started to cry out, "AW!!" she turned to look at their Minister, "HE LOVES MEE!"_

_The Minister was getting really frustrated with these two. He took a deep breath, "Okay," he started again slowly, "You Casey take this man Derek, to be your wedded husband…"_

_Casey tuned out again and brought her hands up to pinch Derek's cheeks, "I love you, Derek."_

_The Minister buried his head in his hands, "Oh my…" he looked up to the man upstairs, "You!" He made his way down to stand right in front of them, "Casey, do you take Derek?" he tried again._

_Casey smiled brightly and nodded, "Yup. IIIIIIIII do!"_

_The Minister took another deep breath, "Okay, great. Now please tell me you two have rings?"_

_Derek and Casey frowned. "I don't has a ring for you, Case. If we don't has them…we won't has our magical powers!"_

_Casey ran a hand through her hair and the panic was coming, "We don't has our rings!! Oh no, Derek! We can't be married! We need our rings!"_

"_I can't believe this is what I deal with…" he shook his head and reached into his pocket, "We have two rings here. They may or may not fit. Just take them please!" he begged. Casey and Derek started howling really loud as they put their rings on one another. "Do you guys have vows?" The Minister immediately groaned, "Who am I kidding…"_

"_I do!" Casey raised her hand. She took Derek's hand, "Derek, I love you! All the time! I'm gonna love you all the time and forever, okay? I promise!"_

"_YES!" he proudly grinned, "Casey, I love you too! Babe, I love youuu! I promise forever!"_

"_YAY!"_

_The Minister sighed, "I now pronounce you Man and Wife. You may now kiss the bride."_

_Derek brought Casey's face toward his and gave her their first kiss as Man and Wife. It was pretty sloppy with both of them being able to taste the alcohol off one another's tongues._

_He pulled back and grinned some more, "Magical Powers, Case!"_

"_Yes! I'm going to use mine so we can be married forever, okay?" she whispered._

_He got closer to her face, "Me too. So we'll be married forever!" he gave her another kiss. "Let's go. I have to go find some place!" _

"_Where?!" Casey asked excitedly. "Somewhere magical?!"_

"_Yup!"_

_There walked out Derek and Casey. They were latched in one another's arms as they laughed hysterically._

_- - - -  
_

"Magical Powers?" Marti choked out a laugh.

"Hey!" Derek defended himself, "We heard Magic somewhere and we were drunk. Sue us."

Casey let out a laugh and continued to tell Marti whatever else they remembered after that.

_--_

"…so here we are now." Casey finished.

Marti frowned, "Dang it. It's over?! That was like the most interesting thing I've heard in forever! So you guys aren't planning on tell Dad and Nora?"

Casey looked at Derek, "I mean we'll eventually tell them…" Derek nodded, "Yeah."

"Yeah, I'd be terrified to tell them too." Marti added her own piece of wisdom. Casey and Derek nodded. "Well guys, it's been great. Thanks for the entertaining night. I learn something new every day!" she ran out of the kitchen to which Derek and Casey raised an eyebrow to.

Finally Casey started to go over what she just remembered and immediately she knew he did it again. Casey rested her chin in the palm of her hand looked over at him. "What?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, "What did I do now?" he sighed.

"Why is it that every time I remember something, I come to find out you already knew about it?"

He smirked, "It's not my fault if my brain is a bit quicker than yours…" she didn't laugh and his smirk dissolved instantly, "I'm sorry, okay? I guess I didn't think it was that important of information. We still don't know why we got married so I just didn't bother to mention it."

Deep down Casey thought it _was_ important information but decided he was right, "So you promise this is all you are keeping from me? You don't know anymore do you?"

"Nothing else," he simply said.

"Fine," Derek smiled as he leaned over to give Casey a quick peck, which quickly turned into a longer one. "Checking my earrings again?" she mumbled.

His hand started roaming her sides as he grinned against her lips, "I'd like to check a little more than your earrings…" she pulled back and smacked his hand away from her, "Hey!"

Casey just laughed at him, "We can't do that here, Hubby." He frowned and she gave him real quick kiss, "Later."

Derek sighed, "Fine. So can we hurry and head on out of here now?"

"Yeah," she got off the stool, "Let's go tell our parent's that we're leaving." Derek and Casey both headed toward the basement door and opened it. What did they see sitting on the stairs? Their parents, who apparently were eavesdropping. All four pairs of eyes were wide as they all bounced on one another's faces.

"Uh, Case?" he whispered toward her.

"Yeah, Derek?" she whispered back; eyes still wide.

Derek stared blankly, "Maybe this'll hurt more than giving birth and nut-kicking."

Casey nodded, "Uh-huh."

* * *

**Ohboy...lol**

**Stay amazing, guys :)**


	12. Relaxation Tea

**AN: Sorry again for the slow update. It's an off day at school and I'm able to post it! hooray!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

"Dad, have I told you how great your hair looks?" Derek tried to butter up his father as he and Casey sat on the couch with their parents standing in front of them. When it came to George, Derek had no problem working him to his advantage. He grinned proudly at his Dad, "I mean if you keep at it, old man, it'll be just as nice as mine always is."

George ran a hand through his hair, "Really?" Derek nodded and Casey tried to hide her laughter, "I've been using this new condit--" Nora smacked his shoulder and George remembered what was actually going on. He cleared his throat, "Not going to work, son."

Derek wrinkled his nose, "I thought I almost had you."

Nora looked down at a quiet Casey. Disappointed was the operative word at the moment, "What about you, Casey. Cat got your tongue?" she spoke in a complacent nature, "Don't tell me you have nothing to say for yourself."

Her breathing became irregular as her mother's tone became more ungracious. "I don't know what you're talking about," she quietly murmured, bringing her attention to the ground. Nora shook her head at her daughters pretend stupidity. For Casey, she wanted to take the easy road…the same one Derek went on. Looking up with a slight beam about her, Casey went on to test her own complimenting, "Mom, have I told you how great you've been looking these days? Is it a diet? Eating healthier?" Nora blushed and looked down at her own body. Casey could see she was actually falling for it as Derek chuckled from beside her, "Yeah, Mom. I'd kill to look like you at your age."

Nora smiled brightly at her daughter as she got into girl-talk mode, "Marti and I have been on the lates--" George cleared his throat extremely loud and Nora was brought out of her trance. "Casey," Nora shook her head in discontent at her daughters deceiving ways, "I cannot believe you just did that."

Casey looked over at a smirking Derek, who whispered, "Well we almost got them right?"

"Yeah," sighing with disappointment in herself, she brought her attention back at the two disgruntled adults, "almost."

Nora and George took their seats on the coffee table to stare at their kids. They sighed at the fact that these two irresponsible kids were still trying to put on some obvious act when they _knew_ they heard everything that came out of their mouths. "We just can't believe you two got married in Ve--"

Casey raised an eyebrow and looked over at Derek, who shared the same look, "Derek, we're married?"

"Not that I know of…" he shook his head with pursed lips, "I don't believe we're married, Casey."

- - - -

_Derek and Casey stared down at their parents. Their emotionless expressions that were plastered across their faces were not one to be thrilled about. The only thing they could think of doing was to brighten the mood. Joke around with their parents. Hopefully it would work…_

"_Hey-hey," Derek laughed nervously at the two of them, "Dad. Nora."_

_Casey: the same. "Mom. George."_

_Both parents shook their heads with a bit of anger and disappointment and immediately Derek and Casey knew their joking plan wasn't working. Nora and George got up from the basement steps that they stood on. "We need to talk to the two of you right now." They demanded and they meant business. Both parents headed toward the living room as Derek and Casey followed slowly behind them._

"_Compliment?" Derek offered in a quiet whisper, "Compliment them first?"_

"_Yeah," Casey nodded, "And if that doesn't work?"_

"_Deny to no end?"_

"_Definitely."_

- - - -

"We heard you!" George shrieked from in front of them.

"What is he talking about?" Casey asked Derek from next to him. She could tell the denying act was getting her Mom and George riled up but decided to keep at it, "Is that why they're getting so worked up?"

"Yeah," he nodded rapidly, "I think that's why. Weird because we _aren't_ married."

"Casey, Derek, stop this act! Stop right now! Stop denying it!" Nora demanded. Yeah, Nora was getting _very_ riled up.

"Denying?" Casey asked, "You can't deny something that isn't true." She turned her head to look at Derek again, "Right?"

He nodded, "Exactly right, Casey."

At that moment, Derek and Casey could see the rage forming in front of them. Nora's eyes becoming much narrower that it gave even Casey and Derek a headache.

Derek could only think how it reminded him of an older and much scarier Casey; the same scary eyes, the same flaring of the nostrils, the same rabid dog growl…uncanny. All he could think was: The Mother of the Exorcist.

George was a lot calmer but he just looked like he wanted to smack Derek over the head for doing something stupid. Derek could see the fidgety hand that looked like it was waiting for a meeting with the back of his head.

Casey fetched a look over at Derek and it was one that told him to just give up the denying because someone was going to get hurt…mainly Derek. Derek already took abuse from his wife and getting hit by his father was out of the question. His brain was far too fragile enough as it is.

"Could you two just stop the act? We're not stupid. We heard every word. We know about everything! We know you got into an accidental marriage. We know that you two are in an actual relationship now. We know, so could you please _stop_!" Nora yelped without breathing.

While she regulated her breathing, it was George's turn to take a stab at them, "What do you two have to say for yourselves? And don't you two _dare_ think about denying it again."

Derek shrugged, "I don't know," was all he could manage out.

George brought his eyes to look at Casey and once again her breathing started to become just as irregular as her mothers. She hated lying and lying to her parents was the worst. Her face became red, "Ah!" she screamed, "Yes!! Derek and I got married in Vegas!" She couldn't help herself the pressure was too much to bear. This only led Derek in exult to himself because her outbursts were one you can't miss, "A drunken mistake of marriage! We tried to get an annulment but we couldn't because we were both stup--" Derek snorted, "Oh, Derek Venturi, do _not_ start with me!" he stopped his joking ways while Casey went back onto her tirade, "We're still married, okay? We have to go through this marital separation. Then one thing led to another and we are together now. We literally just got together! We're sorry! We're sorry we didn't tell you guys, okay?! We're sorry!" she tried to regulate her breathing as well. The words just came out like vomit.

Derek brought his arm over to her to comfort her, rubbing her back to calm her down. "Yeah," he looked at a startled-by-Casey's-outburst Nora and George, "what she said."

"I'm disappointed, Casey," Nora started, "I can't believe you would go and get that ridiculously drunk that you'd go and get married! And not even remember it! I can't believe it! I still can't." She scoffed, "From you I would not expect this." She sighed reluctantly, "Derek on the other hand…"

"Hey!" Derek was clearly offended until George fixed him a look. He sighed and knew it was true, "Fine."

Casey got her breathing back to normal and looked at the two uneasy adults in front of her, "Don't blame this all on Derek." This brought him to raise an eyebrow at her sudden chose of words, "I chose to drink that night and I made as many stupid decisions as he did." Casey then smiled in thought, "And I don't regret it."

"You don't?!" Nora, George, and Derek all screeched in unison.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Casey kind of found it funny that they didn't expect it from her. She brought her attention on Derek as she spoke, "Not at all because I wouldn't be with Derek now." She focused her eyes back on her Mom and George, "At this point, I don't care if you guys accept it or not. I know deep down you two are angry, upset, and God knows what else," she shrugged; slight grin intact, "but I like right now."

Derek had a genuine smile on his face. Sure the past few weeks were a blast but to have her actually admit it to her parents that she liked what they had, just made him a lot happier, "Really, Case?"

"Yeah," she nodded as her attention was put onto him, "I really do. I'm just sorry it took me forever."

"Better late than never…" Derek found himself inching closer to her face until…

"Oh. My. God." "Stop. Please. Don't." Nora and George quietly freaked out.

Derek pulled back all the way and stared at the two in front of him. George was slowly shaking his head while Nora sat there with shock and disbelief on her face with what she almost witnessed. She was just happy she _didn't_ witness it.

"Nora?" George waved a hand in front of her face as it remained the same, "Nora? You okay?"

"Mom?" "Nora?" Both Casey and Derek asked with concern.

Nora snapped out of her trance after a few minutes of concerned silence stewed. She let out a laugh and looked at George, "I think I just had a really horrible daydream that our kids were married…"

Derek, Casey, and George had furrowed eyebrows. "Um, Nora…they are?"

"Dammit, George!" she cried out and it startled all three of them. "I know they are! You couldn't just pretend for my sake!" she focused her angry eyes on Derek and Casey, "How could you two be so stupid?!" she gave them angry smacks on their thighs to which they wrinkled their noses as they rubbed their mini injuries, "Have you two ever heard of a limit when it came to drinking?!"

"Nora, don't you think you're getting a little too worked up?" George reluctantly asked and immediately he knew he shouldn't have touched that detail.

Her eyes grew more furious, "I'm worked up enough for the both of us!" George had his own wrinkling of the nose.

"Mom, calm down, seriously." The angry mother eyes were on Casey now, "De-Derek and I are together now. We got accidentally married and it's over with. There's nothing we can do until that sixth month comes." Derek arched his eyebrows at her mention of what's going to happen in six months. As she spoke, he was still wondering what their decision would be on that sixth month. He was brought out his thoughts when Casey stared at him, "Derek and I are adults. We can deal with everything on our own and if you guys have a problem--"

"You'll just have to deal with it…" he finished for her to which she smiled. He brought his attention to their parents, "Yeah, we know what we're doing."

"If you two knew what you were doing, you wouldn't be married in the first place." George decided to add pathetically toward them.

Derek sighed tiredly at the repetitive nature that was this confrontation, "Dad, it is what it is. Casey and I are together and we'll be together whether you like it or not." He grabbed Casey's hand and intertwined their fingers to show them he was serious, "It's as simple as that. It's up to you to just accept us or not."

George let out his own tired breath as he focused his eyes between his son and his step-daughter. "Hm…" he brought his attention to Nora, "Nora, they're determined."

She didn't answer instead she stared blankly at her hands. Casey decided to just try and sway her Mom to her side. She needed her mother to be okay with this; no matter how many times she and Derek claimed they would go through with this relationship with or without them, her mother's decision was as important as any other decision out there.

Casey scooted up to the edge of the couch, letting go of Derek's hand and placing it on her mothers. Squeezing softly to get her mother's attention, "Mom, yeah Derek and I are determined to do this. But it would be a whole lot easier if you just accepted us. I really need you to accept this. Please, accept this…" she quietly pleaded toward her mom, "Please."

Nora could see the desperation in Casey's voice and in her face. All she could be thankful for was Casey's need for her to be okay with this instead of going against her wishes. It showed much responsibility and maturity. This only led go on with her decision. With a bit of reluctance on her face, she stared between Derek and Casey, "Fine." She sighed as Casey immediately gave her a hug. "Casey, you know I'm just trying to look out for your best interests at hand."

Casey pulled back and smiled at her mother, "Right now, Mom, Derek _is_ my best interests at hand."

"And Casey is the same for me, Nora." Derek grinned brightly to lighten the mood. With arms outstretched, Derek stood in front of the narrow eyed mother-in-law of his, "Come on, Nora," he sang happily toward her, "how about a good ol' hug for your new found son-in-law, huh?"

"De-rek!" Casey and George yelped at him.

"Sorry," he brought his arms down, "too soon to joke?" Nora nodded rapidly so he brought his hand up, "How 'bout a five, Nora? There's no harm in a five?" he grinned again and finally she gave him a weak little five slap on the hand. "_Fantastic._" He fetched a look over at Casey, "Alright. We're accepted. Great…now let's get going…" he was getting a bit antsy and all this parental finding out was ruining his mojo.

George stood up, putting his hands on Derek's shoulders to sit him back down on the couch to which he groaned loudly. "It's not that easy, Derek. Sure we accept you two," Derek and Casey grinned at one another, "but just how stupid were you two to lie on annulment forms? You don't do that!" The grins were gone.

"George, we know that…" Casey exasperated, "we know."

"You two also need to learn control when it comes to alcohol!" Nora shrieked out to join in the lecturing. "You need to know when enough is enough!"

"Nora," Derek sighed, "we know. We know our limit now…we promise."

Both parents settled down. George looked at them seriously due to the fact that these two kids were stupid enough to get themselves in this situation. "Now I want to know what you two are going to do about this marriage."

"Wel--" Derek started as he looked over at Casey.

"We aren't sure what we want to do, George. We don't have to deal with it till six months from now…we'll deal with it then." She spoke rapidly to which Derek couldn't even get a word in. He could see how uneasy the topic was for her to even think about and whether it was a positive or negative outlook about it, he didn't know. "Right, Derek?"

He, too, wasn't really sure what he wanted to do in six months. It was a big decision and it was one he knew he and Casey would have to decide together. Though, deep down he kinda thought about what it would be like to stay married to her but that was all it was… it was just a thought; nothing more than that. He loved what they had now and he just didn't want to get too ahead of himself. With this realization coming through, he thought maybe that was probably why Casey was so weird about the talk…she was just trying to be good ol' cautious and rule-follower Casey.

He nodded and confirmed for their parents, "Yeah. We'll figure it out in six months."

George nodded and he knew that was all they _could_ do at this point. These two were going to get their way whether they opposed to it or not. "Well, I know there's a reconciliation period of some sort. I'm not quite sure, I'll have to read up and get back to you on that." Derek and Casey nodded as he looked over at Nora, "Well it's been one interesting night, hasn't it Nora?"

"Yeah," she nodded, "I know I didn't wake up this morning thinking I'd find out that my daughter and your son would be accidentally married…not to mention also _in_ a real relationship." Nora sighed as she put a hand over her heart, "This can't be good for my blood pressure." Her eyes narrowed at Derek and Casey, "I swear you two will be the death of me."

Derek and Casey frowned.

--

"Mom, so are you really okay with this?" Casey needed to be sure.

Pouring herself another cup of "Relaxation Tea", Nora took a seat on the stool in front of her daughter, "Casey, as long as you're happy I'm happy. You know that's how I am with every decision you make."

Casey nodded, "I know, Mom. You just kind of scared me back there with your freak-out. Now I know how Derek feels when I freak-out on hi--"

"Edwin!" Derek screamed on his cell phone as he entered the kitchen, "I swear to God if you write something in that stupid little theory boo—oh trust me! I totally would go fly to Vancouver right no—Oh you gotta go? Alright, Bro, I'll talk to you later. Bye." He took a seat next at the island with Nora and Casey, who threw him a smirk, "What?"

"Way to be tough, Big Bro!" she mocked him with sarcasm."Ha-Ha." He rolled his eyes, "Did you talk to Lizzie yet?"

"Just off the phone with her..." Casey sighed in remembrance, "She said she saw it coming…well not the marriage but the two of us getting together."

"Like Edwin!" Derek retorted, "Are we slow or something?" Casey shrugged as they both shook their heads at their obliviousness to their own feelings.

Clearing her throat to get their attention, which she got, Nora decided to add her honest thought, "If there wasn't that whole thing about you two being step-siblings…I could see it coming too."

"Umm…" Derek and Casey both raised shock-filled eyebrow, "_What_?!"

Nora chuckled at the two in front of her, "Well…you two are so adorable!" She waved an arm toward Derek to come over, "Come here, son-in-law. I can handle that hug now."

Derek wrinkled his nose, "Nora, I was only kidd--" Casey pinched his leg, "Ow! Fine." He went over to Nora and gave his step-mom slash mother-in-law a hug.

Casey quickly wondered if there was something laced in that "Relaxation Tea."

--

Derek and Casey stood outside the door as Marti began walking down the stairs to say goodbye. Derek still wondered as he looked at George, "So what made you guys eavesdrop?" Immediately they saw Marti walking right back up the stairs and then and there he knew his sister had something to do with this. "Marti! Get down here!" he expressed with mock betrayal. Marti came down, sighing as she stood in front of them, "You, Dad, and Nora all had a sneaky plan??"

"It was hardly sneaky, Smerek. It was just the fact I needed some money…" she explained matter-of-factly.

- - - -

"_Mom, I can wash these dishes if you want?" Casey offered after what was a close call with the whole hubby and wife slip-up. _

"_Casey, you really don--"_

"_It's my pleasure, Mom, really." _

"_And I'll help her!" Derek joined in. Everyone stopped whatever it was that they were doing and just watched him. Nora with the furrowing of her eyebrows, George with the crossing of his arms, Marti with a tiny smirk, and Casey, who shook her head at his obviousness toward their parents. If they were home right now, her hand would've smacked the back of his head already. He even knew if Edwin or Lizzie were there that they'd have a wisecrack or two about his behavior. "What? I'm offering to help Casey out. Shouldn't you all be applauding my newly found maturity and willingness to help out?"_

"_Yeah," George let out a big snort, "We really should be applauding you if we believed it for a minute."_

_Derek groaned loudly at the doubt he gets from everyone; unfair was what it was. Well technically it was all a lie but still…he wanted some sort of compliment. "Why? Why is it so har--"_

"_Derek's going to help me in the kitchen. I've been teaching him how to clean up after himself and he's been pretty good about it. So we'll be in the kitchen." Casey grabbed his hand and pulled him in the kitchen. "Obvious much?!" she screamed in a whisper._

_He glared, "Whatever. I like how they believe you when you speak but when it's me it's like," he brought his hands up to make mocking gestures, "'If we only believed it for a minute'…bullshit." _

_She had it in her to battle back, "Well if you weren't such a lazy ass then they'd actually believe you…"_

"_Hey!" he scoffed with a slight smirk gracing his lips, "You like my lazy ass…"_

_Casey leaned back and took a gander at his lazy ass, "Not disagreeing with you…"_

_--_

"_Hm," Nora let out quietly as she pushed the chairs neatly underneath the dinner table. "Those two are hiding something, right? It's not just me?" She looked over at George, "I mean I know they actually tolerate one another now…but Derek offering to help her and Casey calling him Hubby? Is this how kids talk these days?"_

"_Not that I know of…I mean Hubby and Wife?" he shook his head at the thought and the possibility of how those two words could actually relate to their kids, "Something's going on and I'm going to find out." He went over to the stairs and called down Marti. _

"_Yeah, Daddy?" _

"_I need you to do some snooping and find out what's really going on with Derek and Casey."_

_Marti let out a pathetic laugh toward her father, "Daddy, you know I can't do that to Derek."_

"_30 dollars?" he offered. She shook her head, "60?" Marti sighed which led to a George groan, "75 and that's as far as I'll go."_

"_Done," Marti smirked._

"_Just try to fin--"_

"_Daddy, Nora, I know what I'm doing. Derek taught me well…"_

_Nora and George nodded and headed into the kitchen where they saw Derek and Casey next to one another…and a little too close for comfort. As they made their presence known, the two troublemakers quickly darted away from one another. It only made Nora and George more suspicious than they already were. They shook off the urge to say something and just headed into the basement, awaiting any sort of news or information on what Derek and Casey were up to._

"_That was close…"_

- - - -

"So you gave me up for 75 bucks?" Derek shook his head sadly at his younger sister, "We were a team, Smarti."

"Well," Marti shrugged but had a proud grin form, "I love you, Smerek, but I love an easy 75 bucks better."

"Traitor," he muttered jokingly toward her.

"I love you, too!" she gave a big hug.

He rolled his eyes in mock annoyance, "Yeah, yeah."

The couple said their goodbyes to the three members of their family and after a grueling confrontation. They were just glad it was over.

Derek shook his head and gave Casey a look of disbelief as they walked over to his car, "Can you belie--"

"I don't know why you're so shocked…" Casey grumbled toward him, "She's exactly like you. Damned Venturi's."

"Don't curse your own name, _sweetheart_," Derek smirked toward her, "If you haven't forgotten, you're a Venturi too."

She managed a smirk of her own, "And right now, it ain't such a bad thing…"

He shook of the shiver that ran through his body at her words, "H-home...we g-gotta go home..." he stammered.

--

There they lay in bed after an exhausting evening and a very exhausting session of "Earring Checking" and "Rock Band drumming". All they could think was Thank God it was all finished and over with… well the finding out because their sessions were one they both never got tired of.

Their parents knew and they were still alive to see another day. Their siblings knew and they were all supportive…even with the teasing. This slowly just started taking a turn for the better with them being together and it was all they could ask for at the moment. Support and acceptance was what was needed and so far they were getting it.

Slowly running his hand in her hair, Derek recalled everything that went on. All the things they talked about with their parents and all the things Casey said about them together, "Hey, Case?"

"Hm?" she mumbled groggily against him.

"You really don't regret any of the stuff that happened?"

"Of course not," Casey smiled as she absent-mindedly picked the lint off his shirt, "like I told our parents, I have you now." She sat up and sat cross legged as she smiled at him, "If I had to get drunkenly married all over again to be with you, I would."

He managed a smile, "Me too." Then he thought when Casey said things like that, and sure enough for the past few weeks she's said it many times, it just kind of gave him the assurance that maybe she wanted to go through with this in the long haul. So he decided it was time to maybe bring it up again. Sitting up as well, Derek wanted to slowly ease in the talk much like she did the night they got together, "So," he shrugged, "you remember our wedding, right?"

She let out a laugh, "Yeah, no thanks to you." Casey made her way to sprawl on his lap as she intertwined their hands, "I remember it. Elvis and you being so jealous over him," he wrinkled his nose, "stupid ass magical powers," they both busted out into laughter.

Shaking his head, it was still unbelievable how childish they were as drunkies, "How in the hell do a bunch of 21 year olds grow so excited over magical powers?"

She snorted lightly at him, "Alcohol is how a bunch of 21 year olds grow so excited over magical powers." Casey started to giggle at the thought, "We even had vows, Derek. What the hell!"

"Yeah," he joined in her laugh and this was his opening, "The vows..." he laughed nervously, "we were going to use our magical powers so we--"

"…could stay mar--" she arched her eyebrows and her body went tense at what she almost said. Topic was still uneasy for her.

He stared blankly at her and immediately he knew she _still_ really wasn't ready to talk about it. "I'm sorry I keep bringing it up, Case. I ju--"

She got off of him and he frowned at her distant act, "I'm pretty sleepy. We'll talk about it later, okay?" he nodded.

He always nodded. It was all he could do when she changed the subject or postponed the talk. Always a nod. Deep down a part of him just wanted to step in and demand the talk but this was Casey. He hated fighting with her; sure the annoying arguments were what was best in their relationship, but serious fights? They just weren't going to cut it. So he just let it go like he always did. Let her go on with her avoiding because he didn't want to ruin a good thing and he knew that was what Casey was probably trying to do as well. "Night, Casey."

She gave him a quick peck before getting comfortable on her side of his bed. Casey hated doing this to him but in her mind she just didn't know what she wanted to do. There was a part of her that just wanted to sit and talk to him about it because the look of exasperation on his face wasn't one she liked seeing. But she just wanted to avoid it as much as she could. Six months was still a long time to think about everything. She didn't want to rush it. This was finally a relationship that she was actually enjoying. She was able to be herself without changing the way she was and Derek was still his good old self too. It was refreshing to just be with him and ruining it with a stupid talk about six months wasn't going to happen. Not yet.

"Night, Derek."

Derek just sat there in silence for a while as Casey slept next to him. Running a hand through his hair as he sat and thought; thank goodness his cell phone rang or else he would've gone a bit crazy. He reached over and grabbed the phone and headed out the door.

--

After a long and informative conversation with George, Derek sat there puzzled. He got up and felt the need to go and talk to Casey but as he opened the door, she was sound asleep. He didn't want to wake her because cranky Casey was not pretty. Heading back to the couch, he was a bit of a nervous wreck but the answer to his problems came barking out of her bedroom.

"Sam, please shut up!" she stood in her doorway, "It was once! You don't have to try it again!" Huffing toward the kitchen, "Men and pedicures…they won't ever work!" Just then she was startled to see Derek sitting there in the dark. It was kind of creepy.

"Hey, Gina," he whispered as she continued toward the kitchen, "come here." Gina raised an eyebrow and sat next to him on the couch, "I need a favor."

* * *

**I cliffhangereereered it. I'm sorry. ;)**

**Stay amazing with your awesome reviews. I shall update quicker this time...it's gonna be weekend after all. lol**


	13. What is the point?

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. **

* * *

On rare occasions such as this one, Casey woke up before Derek. It was a bit odd. When they were in their high school days, Casey was an early bird; always making sure she was awake before a certain hour especially if there was something she was scheduled to do. These days, she found herself being awaken by her husband with kisses or even coffee in the mornings. It was a whole side of Derek she never even knew existed and it just made her embrace what they had even more. Planting a tiny kiss on his lips, Casey got out of bed and saw Gina pouring some coffee. "Morning, Gina."

"Hey, Sweetie, you're up early." She held up the pot, "You want?"

Casey nodded and took a seat at their table, "I'm usually always up early when Derek wakes me up but then he harasses me to the point I can never leave that room."

"Same with Sam," Gina let out and they both shared a laugh.

More than a few weeks had passed since that night she spoke to Derek and Gina never had the right time to talk to Casey. There was always a setback. Like Derek coming in at the wrong time or Sam interrupting their girl talk; even Emily tried to help out but Casey was just lost in a whole talking about Derek world, talking about something hilarious or cute Derek had done for her.

There was never a right time and sitting there alone with her at the kitchen table, Gina knew now was the time to help her friend out with his favor.

- - - -

"_Hey, Gina," he whispered as she continued toward the kitchen, "come here." Gina raised an eyebrow and sat next to him on the couch, "I need a favor."_

_Gina groaned, "If it's to help you steal Casey's earrings again I'm no--"_

_Derek glared, "I said we never speak of that again."_

_She let out a laugh, "Oops, so what?" _

"_Casey and I went to tell our parents…" his nose wrinkled, "well we hardly went to tell them. Those crazy kids were eavesdropping on us telling Marti our little situation."_

_Gina was excited to know how that turned out. "So what happened?!" she yelped loudly._

"_Shh!" he looked behind him at his door, "Casey's sleeping." She quickly settled down. "So they were pretty crazy for a bit but we told them there was nothing that either of them could do because this is what it is and we're adults. Blah, blah, so after that they lectured us about alcohol and how we aren't supposed to lie on annulment forms. But everything was pretty cool and they accepted us together--"_

"_That's a good thing right?" she raised an eyebrow to which he nodded, "So why do you look so unsettled?"_

_He shrugged, "I just got off the phone with my Dad and he told us about our little situation. He said that since me and Casey are kind of together, that it counts as a reconciliation. And there's 90-day reconciliation period as to whether or not we want to stay married or stick with the divorce. If we stick with the marriage and go over the 90 days and then realize we still want the divorce, we'd have to go through another year of separation. The time cycle would have to start all over again. At this point I'm not even sure what to do."_

"_Okay, hold on one second." She expressed with slight confusion, "So you're saying that if you and Casey stay together past these 90-days that are ticking…and end up wanting the divorce later on you'll have to go through another year of this stupid separation? So the last six months would just dissolve like a waste of time?"_

_Derek rolled his eyes, "That's exactly what I said…"_

"_Shut up, Derek," she complained, "I needed to say it out loud to help myself understand it."_

"_Slow," he coughed out._

"_Do you want me to help you with this or not?" she challenged and got up to convince him._

"_NO!" he screamed in a whisper, "Help me!" he pulled her arm to sit her back on the couch._

"_Then stop making fun of me!" snapped quietly._

"_Fine! I'll stop!"_

_She got her beam back to grace her lips, "Alright, so this 90-day crap…it pretty much sucks. It's like you two would be wasting time if you go over the time period."_

"_Exactly!" he squeaked, "And I'm not sure if I want to stay married or get the divorce because every time I try to talk about it with Casey, she ignores me or changes the subject. It's like she's avoiding it." He snorted to himself, "She _is_ avoiding it."_

"_She's probably just not sure what she wants to do either. I mean because you two are pretty great together and she's probably just confused." Gina offered._

_Derek nodded in agreement as he ran a nervous hand through his hair, "Yeah, I figured that. Casey never avoids a problem or situation. She usually tries to solve it or figure it out… so that must be it." Gina nodded, "So that's why I need your help."_

_Gina raised an eyebrow, "What am I supposed to do?"_

"_Casually slip in the talk about our marriage and maybe she'll open up to you. You and Emily are the only one's she'd share stuff like this with. She sure as hell won't tell me anything. Just ask her what she wants to do on that twelfth month. Ask her if she wants us to work or not. I need to know before this 90-day bullshit is done ticking. I really am not trying to waste time here. A year is damn long and to have to go through another one…"_

_Gina nodded, "I'll certainly try but what if she wants a divorce?" Derek didn't answer and immediately she knew, "You don't want to divorce her, huh Derek?" He arched his eyebrows and she grinned so hard it made Derek's cheeks hurt, "You so want to stay married to her don't you? Tell me, Derek!" He blushed. "Oh my God, Derek Venturi wants to stay married to his wife. I seriously won this bet."_

_Derek shrugged with a hidden smile, "Maybe…" he saw Gina's unconvinced face, "Okay, fine. I do. I want to stay married to her because I kinda do…you know," he shrugged once more, "love her." Gina was about to scream but Derek covered her mouth with his hand. "Shut up!" he screamed in a whisper. _

_He cautiously took his hand off and she tried her hardest to quiet down, "Oh my, Derek. So adorable…for as long as I've known you, you never have been in love with anyone. I definitely have to tell Emily." Derek rolled his eyes at her, "Okay, I'll definitely get this plan set. I'm pretty sure Casey feels the same way. Then you two can live happily ever after!"_

_Derek gave up trying to hide it. He had a smile creep up on his features, "Yeah, hopefully." _

_- - - -  
_

It was time to get the talk in motion, "Casey?" Casey looked up at her as she took a sip of her coffee, "So you and Derek are the cutest. You know that right?"

Casey let out a laugh, "Sure…"

"Husband and Wife…totally adorable," Gina tried to get the subject out there without being completely obvious.

Casey arched her eyebrows and laughed at her very-weird-at-times friend, "Yeah…what's going on with you?"

Gina shook her head, "Nothing. Anywhoo…speaking of husbands and wives…marriages…" Gina felt like smacking herself for sounding like a rambling idiot. Teasing and information getting came naturally to Gina but being in a situation where she was forced or obliged to do so, was extremely hard to do.

"Aw," Casey put her mug down and had a bit of an excited grin on her face, "Sweetie, are you and Sam getting married too?"

That was the last thing her and Sam were ready for. Not even _close_ to being ready for. She threw Casey a scoff, "Hell no." She calmed down and needed to bring her focus back on helping Derek, "Since we're on the topic of marriages…"

--

Derek awoke and felt an empty space next to him, "Case?" he called groggily and saw she wasn't there. He lazily got out of bed and was about to head out the door until he could hear them talking. "Since we're on the topic of marriages…" he heard Gina speaking to Casey and now wasn't the time to interrupt like he had for the past few weeks. Now was the time to find out what his future was going to be like. If there would still _be_ a marriage in his future.

There was a part of him that was confident she wanted it too...but at the same time it was a 50-50 chance she could say that "no" word. And he really hoped she wouldn't say that no word.

--

"…you and Derek…what are you going to do about your marriage?" Gina finally was able to breathe correctly as she started to perspire.

Casey blushed from the randomness of that question. She'd been trying to avoid this talk especially with Derek and now out of nowhere she was having it being asked by a friend she kept nothing from. She shrugged while staring down at her mug, "I don't know, Gina."

"Oh, _come _on, Casey." Gina threw her an unconvinced look as Casey's eyes drew away from the mug and back to her other very intuitive friend, "It's okay. This is a safe space." Gina wanted to try a different approach: make annoyingly cute accusations. She grinned as sat up straight in her seat, "You want to stay married to Derek, don't you?"

--

Derek's heart started to beat extremely fast and he felt his palms get all sweaty. He closed his eyes in hopes he'd get the answer he was hoping for.

--

Casey sat up; her arms on the table as she looked down at her coffee mug once more. "I don't know." She looked up and saw Gina about to attempt to say something more, "Before you say anything, what I don't know is how I'm feeling about this. Yeah, Derek's fantastic and, "Casey leaned closer, "I think I might actually love him…"

--

Derek smiled a sincere smile but the tone of her voice was still scaring him.

--

Casey shrugged again, "…but something inside keeps wonder where this will go. According to George, if we pass the 90-day mark in our 'reconciliation' and it doesn't work we have to wait another year. It would be like these last 7 months were nothing. Which is complete bullshit by the way," she ran a hand through her hair, "I keep thinking what if Derek and I don't work out. This whole thing just made me start to think about what our relationship really is. What if this was just some jump on hormones and something? Or if these are just temporary feelings and one day we'll not feel that way toward each other and then we'd have to go through this divorce process again. I _really_ don't want to go through another one." She lightly groaned, "I haven't tried to speak to Derek about this because every time we're together we have a blast and I just don't want to mess with that. I don't want to ruin a good thing. Then I start to think that maybe I want to just stay married to this guy because I care about him a lot. A whole lot…"

--

Derek's breathing became erratic. "Please, Casey…" he said to himself.

--

"…then I start to look at my parents or Derek's parents. They all married because they were in love before. _Then _they got divorced. Derek and I got married because we were drunk and that was the only reason…"

--

"Pssh..." he shook his head, "Hardly," he scoffed.

--

"…then it's like what the hell kind of marriage can you build off of that? It's like Derek and I were forced into feeling these things and then what'll happen? Get a divorce because of a mistake that should've never happened anyway? I constantly think about it and when Derek's with me again I feel like I shouldn't be thinking about it. I just want to stay with him and be happy and fun." Casey realized she was rambling and deep down she knew what she felt like she really wanted to do, "I'm trying to think reasonable here, Gina, and the only thing I see is divorce."

Gina frowned and this is just not what she was expecting to hear. She could have sworn that Casey felt the same way. From the way they had been with one another and how cute they were; this just wasn't something that was going to turn out good. Not good at all.

Right now she felt terrible about having to tell Derek.

--

Derek took a step back and sat on the edge of his bed. He didn't know it would hurt this bad to hear her say the words, but it did. He ran his hands through his hair and figured this was it. This is what was going to happen. She didn't believe that they could stick it out… she had doubts about them.

He slowly got up and approached his dresser. Opening the drawer, he reached behind all the clothes, staring at the black little box in his hands. "A waste…all of this was a waste." He shook his head and threw the little box back into the drawer and slammed it shut.

--

"Casey, are you sure that's what you want?" Gina thought she should try again, especially for Derek's sake. They both heard a loud slam that startled them but ignored it and went on with their talk.

"Weird," Casey shrugged and continued, "I don't know, Gina, I don't. I know that if we're going strong then there's no need to divorce him," Gina nodded in agreement, "then there's that stupid nagging negative feeling about the future that just makes its way into my br--" She was interrupted by Derek coming out to join them for breakfast. Casey smiled at him as he took an angry seat next to her, "Morning."

He plastered a fake smile, "Morning." He threw Gina a look and immediately she knew that Derek was aware of Casey's answer. It was obvious that loud slam was him. Gina could see the bit of anger and sadness balled up into Derek Venturi's face; now she just felt sorry for him…but the confrontation might be a bit interesting. "So what have _you_ two been talking about?" Yeah, Gina knew it was going to be _very_ interesting.

"Nothing, really," Casey let out as she brought her mug to her mouth. She knew she just admitted what she saw as reasonable but she just wasn't sure she was ready to tell Derek. A part of her felt like she just wanted to take back what she said. Every time she was alone and without him, she thought crazy about them. Then he'd be with her and just want to forget everything because he made her sane. It was like this for months. He had some effect over her and she'd just be crazy without him.

Derek nodded slowly, "So you still want to divorce me, eh?" Casey choked on her coffee and wiped her mouth with her sleeve. "It's okay, Casey," he bitterly laughed at her, "you don't have to lie to me. I know you do."

Casey arched her eyebrows and she truly hated when people accused her doing this she surely wasn't go to do, "Who said I was going to lie to you? I'm not going to lie to you. Yeah, I kinda still want the divorce." She saw pain flicker through his eyes as his body tensed. She instantly softened, "Derek, but that doesn't mean I care about you any less. I think we still need this divorce."

Derek snorted and looked at Gina, "Can you believe her?"

Gina shook her head and raise d her hands in defense, "I'm not involved in this."

"Can she believe what?" Casey asked him seriously, "I mean, seriously Derek, did you want to stay married to me? Are you so sure that at your age you're ready to settle down and stay with me? That it's going to be me forever?"

"Actually Casey," he gave a slight nod, "yeah. I actually have. For the past few months I've thought about this. I've thought about staying married to you. Is that hard to believe that maybe, _just maybe_, I have something in me that picks you out of all the rest? Because for the past few months I've come to realize that you_ are_ something else. And I don't want that to leave." Casey was taken aback. She had no idea Derek felt this strongly about her and here she went having major doubts about where this would go. "But after hearing you and your reasoning for this divorce I guess I kinda see it your way too." His voice became even more bitter toward her and she hadn't heard this from in a long time, "We're not that secure in a relationship to actually last in a marriage."

"I wasn't insinuating that, Derek." She turned red from his accusations, turning in her seat to stare at him straight in the eyes, "I was just thinking out loud and rambling. I don't even remember half the things I was saying." She defended herself. He threw her a very bitter snort as he stared ahead of her to avoid her eyes, "What the hell is your problem? Just because I want a divorce still doesn't mean I don't want to be with you. We can still be together, Derek."

Derek sighed and shook his head slightly. The feeling he was feeling were those of an exasperated husband, "Then seriously what's the point? What's the point of divorcing if we're going to be together anyway?"

Gina sat there and saw both reasoning's as equal. She realized Casey's right to want a divorce and have a real relationship with him minus the marital status because they don't know where their relationship is going. Then Derek's reasoning that if they are still going to be together then really…what_ is_ the point?

"The point, Derek, is that we don't know where this will go." She explained, "We don't know if we'll last in this relationship. We don't know if we'll even stand one another in a few months or if we'll grow apart. We don't know if this," she motioned the space between them, "is forever!" she cried out, "Then we'd be wasting _our _time. Why not just divorce and then try for real? Then we won't have this separation period breathing down our backs again."

He chose to ignore those last few statements and cut right to the chase, "You mean _you_ don't know where this will go," he retorted sourly, "I've thought about it Casey and I see it going somewhere. I see it going pretty damn far and if you don't want to try actually believing in us then I guess I want a divorce too." He nodded smugly for her, "Yeah, divorce seems pretty freakin' _sweet_ right now."

Casey glared and now she was just angry. She hadn't been this angry with him in what seems like forever and there was only one thing she could do toward him: act out, "Yeah! It does doesn't it?!" she returned the favor just as smug.

Derek nodded in agreement as the arrogance washed on his face, "Yeah, let's get a divorce."

Eyes were still staring daggers at him as her body started to fill with rage, "I really can't_ wait_ to divorce you!"

Derek let out another bitter laugh, "The faster the better right?" he got up and started walking away.

"Yeah! If I could that damned divorce now I would!" her body shook with anger as she yelled and he quickly slammed his door. Casey buried her head in her hands, "What the hell is going on?!" immediately she wanted to take it back because Casey McDonald likes to say things she doesn't mean when she's pissed off. Derek then came out of his room and she brought her head out to turn and look at him, "Der--" He was dressed and ready to go as he grabbed his keys to leave. "Where are you going?" she sighed with furrowed brows.

Derek was in his own right to glare at Casey, "I don't owe you an explanation, soon-to-be _ex_-wife." He stormed out the apartment.

Casey put her head down on the table and buried her head in her arms. Gina was in shock. Everything happened so fast. She heard Casey wanting the divorce. Then she heard Derek telling her there's no point. Then Casey explaining they should. Then Derek agreeing _to_ the divorce… followed by the yell and a door slam. She wanted to comfort Casey somehow but at this point she was seriously confused about what to do. All she could think was how their bickering was kind of amusing because they sounded like whining children. Yeah, Emily _was_ right...it was child development for real.

Finally Sam came out the room, rubbing his eyes as he made his way over to the table. Waking up to yelling was rare in this apartment…well Gina's yells were one he was already used to and what he heard was definitely _not_ Gina. He gave his girlfriend a good morning kiss, "What's going on?"

Gina shook her head to save him the gory details. That and she really didn't want to repeat the incident right in front of one of its participants. "You don't wanna know…" She then leaned over to him and whispered, "Let's never get married, okay?"

* * *

**lol. What romantic/comedy doesn't have that little bit drama, huh? But reminder...it's still supposed to be humorous. :)**

**Are you guys still out there being amazing? I hope so. **


	14. Good and Bad Impulses

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

* * *

It was already 8 that night and Derek still hadn't come back. Casey was getting worried and she even cried a little. Well the huge tear stains on the couch pillows would beg to differ. Emily came over after Gina told her what happened; they both just tried to comfort her and she still wasn't happy. She wished that Derek would just come back so they could talk and fix whatever this is that they have to fix. Deep down she still knew her reasoning was right and for that she wasn't going to back down from her decision to still want this divorce. She became a bit scared of the fact that Derek started to agree and what that boy was up to, Casey had no idea.

"I want a popsicle."

Emily took her attention off her cell phone and arched her eyebrows at Random Gina, who sat next to her, staring blankly at the TV, "What?"

Not even retorting to Emily's questioning, "I really like the orange ones. Those are yummy." Her face wrinkled in thought, "Although, the red ones are really good too. I definitely should go tell Sam to pick some up on his way home." Excitement beamed next onto the many faces of this Random Gina, "Green! I love th--"

"Gina!" Casey screamed for her to stop and she did. Putting Derek's beloved recliner back in its upright position, she stared nervously at the girls, "Am I stupid?" she asked them with a bit of a pathetic tone toward herself, "Am I stupid for always thinking rationally?" the girls shrugged quietly to themselves, "I am!" she groaned, "I am a horrible person for trying to think reasonable…"

Emily sighed and knew it was time to accommodate this friend of hers. "Casey, you think rationally. That's who you are and it's not a horrible thing to do so."

"She's right," Gina joined in to help her friend, "That's your character and there's no reason to beat yourself up about it. You think things through and Derek doesn't."

"Derek tends to do things…" Emily shrugged using a few hang gestures, "always on the spur of the moment. You know this Casey and he should know that you are Rational and Reasonable all the time. It's you."

"So why do I feel so terrible? If this is who I am then why do I feel so guilty? I want this divorce so we could be together for real. Not together under some stupid drunken label."

"I'm sure, Casey," Gina continued, "that if you just explain to Derek what you've just told us then he'll understand." She snorted, "I mean I was just as pissed off as Derek was when you said divorce," Casey's evil blue eyes narrowed toward Gina, who immediately received a nudging elbow from Emily, telling her to stop right now, "_but_ after hearing you explain it, Casey, I completely understand where you're coming from."

Casey had the evil dissolve from her face and offered her girlfriends a smile, "You're right." Getting off the recliner, she darted over to Derek's room and grabbed her cell phone to call him. "Answer, please." Unfortunately she caught his voicemail…which was completely new, "_This is Venturi's phone. Leave me a message unless you're an over-thinking and overly-sensible woman named Casey."_ Casey's eyes grew narrow at his childish act over a stupid voicemail recorder. Angrily pressing the red End Call button, she stormed back out into the living room. She had enough of sitting around and trying to be reasonable again while he was out doing whatever it was he was doing. Reasonable was not going be an option. "Derek Venturi is a bastard!" she groaned, "I'm _not_ going to wait around like some stupid crying girl. If he's going out, I'm going out too. Let's go!"

Emily and Gina looked at one another; a bit startled by her sudden rush of anger and hostility, "Okay." They said in unison.

--

Derek spent his time driving around the area. He was angry; he was upset; he was pissed off at Casey. It really made him pissed to know that it was _him_ that wanted this more than her because it was usually always the other way around. Girls always wanted this tooty fruity love story shit…but no. Not Casey because she had to follow the rules and over-think everything. Everything including their relationship and this ran through Derek's mind over and over again. It only made him feel so much more anger towards the situation; towards Casey.

He needed to go some place and think. He was tired of driving around because there were no answers and he was definitely wasting gas.

He decided he needed a drink…or two…or three.

--

Casey stared at her left hand; ring finger. There sat her wedding ring. Cheap metal ring that was totally worthless but it meant a lot to her. It was a symbol of a drunken union and because it was that, she'd never forget it. For the first few months of their marriage, she hid that ring and never wanted to see it. Ever since Derek and her have became something more than friends, she brought that ring out from hiding and occasionally kept it in her pocket just to let her know it was there. Then when their parents found out about their mistake of a marriage, she put it on her finger and just left it there. She knew they were hardly married but that ring meant her and Derek together and she wanted that ring on her finger; it just made sense that it was there. For the past hour and a half that they'd been at that lounge, guys had been hitting on her left and right but she didn't want any of them. She constantly used that ring to shield her from those strangers and she felt proud to have it on. It helped her realize that she really didn't want anyone else and she certainly didn't want to take that ring off.

--

Derek downed another shot and stared at his own left hand; ring finger. He and Casey both started actually keeping their wedding rings on. Each time he would glance over at her hand and see it there it only made him think that she wanted to stay married too. For the past few weeks he thought that she wanted this just as bad as he did but unfortunately for him, she still wanted to divorce him. Sure he still knew she was right about getting it. He knew it made sense because Casey was always right. She could never do wrong in his eyes and right now she still wasn't wrong.

Staring down at that ring made him recall that special day. That day he knew for sure that he loved her. No second guessing because it was love he really felt. Yeah, that and he had the receipt to prove it.

- - - -

_Derek could feel a soft hand gently stroking the side of his cheek. For the past month, it was the only soft hand he wanted touching his face because that hand belonged to his wife. Opening his eyes, he saw that face he was so used to seeing in the mornings and it smiled right back at him, "Happy birthday, Hubby."_

_He smirked and snuck a quick kiss. Pulling back he cut right to the chase, "So…what'd you get me?"_

"_Nothing...yet," she pouted, "You know, you are very hard to shop for."_

_Pulling her closer to him, he brought his face closer to hers, "You know you are all I want for my birthday." Casey had a reflex to raise an eyebrow with a slight grin. "What?"_

"_Derek Venturi, since when are you incredibly sweet?"_

"_Hey!" he scoffed jokingly, "Derek Venturi has always been sweet. I just never chose to show it to you…"_

"_Well aren't I special?" he nodded with a slight grin of his own as he pulled her in for longer and much more enticing kiss, "Craaap."_

_Arching his eyebrows, he pulled back, "Jeez, do I kiss that ba--" _

_Casey brought her hand up to cover his mouth and chuckled lightly at him. "No. You are an amazing kisser. It's just I feel really guilty for not getting you anything." She shrugged, "Let's go to the mall before dinner. I want to get you something. Maybe if I actually shop with you, I'll find something great to give you."_

_He pulled her on top of him where she lightly straddled, "You already gave me something great."_

_She pinched his cheeks to which he wrinkled his nose at, "I meant something like a present, you perv." Casey brought her hands to cup his face as she sighed happily, "If someone told me a few years ago that it would be you that made me happy, I would've shot them."_

"_Aww," he teased, "Stop, Casey, you're making me blush…" he sarcastically joked and it led him to receive a slap on the shoulder, "I'm kidding, Case. You make me happy too. Are you happy now?" She beamed at him, "Hey," he looked over at her left hand and raised a questioning eyebrow, "You're wearing your wedding ring."_

_Casey's face fell at his tone, "Should I take it off? I kinda just lef--" he shook his head and lifted up his own left hand to show her he was wearing his too, "You too!" they both laughed, "I guess after Mom and George found out there was no point in hiding it. I actually kind of like having it on."_

"_Good." He muttered to which her eyebrow furrowed, "That way, guys will know you're taken."_

"_Way better than that hermaphrodite sign you keep threatening to put on me." He started laughing to himself again at the word hermaphrodite, "Well girls better not look at you either because you're taken too," she wrinkled her nose at the thought of Derek and other girls. She felt the need to shudder._

"_You're enough girl for me to handle, Case." Casey immediately glowered and he _immediately _needed to correct himself, "I meant that in the most positive way. I promise."_

"_Good." She got off of him, "I need a shower…" and scowled, "I smell like you."_

_He shrugged with a hidden grin, "You need help with that or…"_

_Casey shook her head and laughed at him, "Come on, perv boy."_

_--_

_A grueling two hours had passed and Casey still couldn't find anything to buy for Derek. He was completely picky and choosy about things, causing Casey to become a bit more hostile. It was his birthday and she knew she had to be nice to him but finding the impossible present was annoying. She kind of had a feeling he was doing this to her on purpose because torturing her was still the number one priority in his life and being in a relationship with him wasn't going to get in the way of that._

_Yeah, Derek was pretty much torturing her with this whole search for his birthday present because he saw how terribly crazy she was starting to become. This only made his birthday a lot more fun. Deep down, he really didn't want a gift from her. She was enough for him and when he told her that this morning, he really meant it. But he was dragged to the mall anyway and he found himself liking the feel of being out in public with her. There was nothing to hide with them anymore and it started to feel a lot more real. Derek Venturi was never one for a relationship but this Casey McDonald-Venturi put some type of spell over him. He was whipped and tamed by her and he really didn't care. PDA was a rule no more because he found himself holding her hand as they went through the majority of the stores; even sneaking a few kisses here and there and he just didn't care. He loved what he was doing. He loved everything about her. He loved what they had. He loved her…but that was something he would keep inside him because he needed to be sure he even believed it._

"_Are you seriously trying to be difficult, Derek?" she groaned as they walked out of a hockey memorabilia store. _

_He bit his lip to control his laughter, "I'm not! There was nothing in there that I liked, Casey."_

_She started growling at how long this was taking. Dinner was in a few hours and they weren't even ready for that. "This is hockey, Derek! There had to be something in there…"_

_He shrugged his shoulders at that statement. Sure hockey was a major priority in High School and at University but he just didn't see himself going far with it. Well just up until months ago he dreamed about it still but as things started to change in his life, he realized there were more important things…like Casey. _

_In High School, he was a God of the sport and University brought on people with much more talent than he had or even Sam had. He wasn't really the star but he was still pretty great and now it just became something of a hobby. Derek could only thank his Dad for encouraging him to have a fallback major that he could actually use if necessary. "There was nothing," he assured her._

_Her nose wrinkled and it only made Derek enjoy this more. "So damned difficult…"_

_He smirked lightly at her, "Casey, you don't have--" Casey stood staring into the window of the jewelry shop. She was a bit mesmerized, "You want to go in here?"_

_She shook her head almost immediately, "No. I need to find a present for you, Derek." _

_He squeezed her hand and gave her a quick kiss, "Come on. Let's go look." There they both looked into the glass showcases where there were rings of all sorts. _

"_Wow…" Casey breathed out at the ring her eyes were glued to. It was __a sparkling cushion-cut diamond that sat atop a gorgeous shining diamond channel-set platinum band. The center stone was prong-set and was flanked by two .75 carat princess cut diamonds. It was extremely breathtaking.__ "That is gorgeous…" she breathed out as Derek took a look at what she quickly fell in love with. "Must cost a fortune," she wrinkled her nose. "Blah…let's get out of here." She muttered, "Stupid jewelry these days; so damned expensive." Casey tugged on his arm as he continued to stare at the ring. _

"_Why don't you try it on?" her eyebrows furrowed almost immediately, "Just do it, Casey," he groaned, "I know you want to. There's no harm in trying it on." Without awaiting some sort of response, he looked at the Jeweler, "My man, could she try on that very pretty ring right there?"_

"_Sure, Sir," he went and opened up the glass case to fetch out the ring._

"_Derek, why are you doing this?" she tiredly complained, "I was just looking. I don't really want it."_

_He rolled his eyes at her humble act, "I know when you like something, Case. You're just trying it on." He scoffed jokingly toward her, "Because I'm definitely _not_ buying it for you."_

_Letting out a quiet snort, Casey looked back at the Jeweler, "Subtle."_

_He chuckled and gave her the ring to put on. "It's a very beautiful ring, isn't it?"_

"_Mhmm…" Casey was captivated by how absolutely stunning it was on her finger but she quickly realized this was an engagement ring. She was only engaged for like five minutes and immediately felt the need to take it off. "Thanks for letting me try it on." She grabbed Derek's arm and dragged him out of the store. "Okay," she shrugged off their little jewelry stop, "Derek Venturi, a gift for you." _

"_You didn't like the ring?" _

_He brought it up again and she groaned out, "I absolutely loved it, Derek, but it's an engagement ring. We were hardly engaged and we are hardly married. I don't know what I was thinking." Casey took a deep breath and tried to get this show on the road, "Now, Derek, I need to get you a present! No more of this stupid ring talk, okay?" he nodded, "Alright, now let's go to--"_

_Derek sighed heavily, "Casey, how about this. You go off and look for a present for me. If I go with you, you'll never find anything. Just pick something; anything. I promise I'll love it because you got it for me. Please just go with your instinct. I'll wait here." He sat on the bench, "Just call me when you're ready. I'll wait."_

"_Fine," she gave him a quick peck, "You better like what I get you, okay?"_

"_I will," he snickered lightly at her, "I promise." She nodded and went on her way. Derek waited till she was out of sight and he brought his eyes to look over at that jewelry store. Boy was he tempted to do it. Running a hand through his hair, he sat and pondered about why he even _had_ to the thought run through his mind. Then he realized she was that special to him. For the past month that they were actually together, she had become that special to him and he knew he was taking a risk in doing so. Gina or Emily still weren't able to get any marriage talk out of Casey but Gina was pretty sure Casey felt the same way and pretty sure was enough for him. He was the guy in this marriage and if he felt this strongly about her then she definitely had to feel it just as strong, if not stronger._

_He got up off that bench and walked back into the Jewelry shop, approaching the same Jeweler he saw just minutes ago, "Hey."_

"_Back again, Sir?" he asked politely, "What can I help you with?"_

"_That ring? That ring my wife," oh how natural it was for him to say it, "tried on. Could I see it again, please?"_

"_Sure thing," he opened up that glass case and got the ring out to show Derek. "It is a very beautiful ring, sir. I know your wife really loved it."_

_Derek nodded and smiled at the ring, "Yeah, she did." Bringing his attention back to the Jeweler, "See we weren't engaged for too long because of a whole crazy story but I feel like I want to get her a 'real' engagement ring and I know she really loved this one." He stared down at the ring once more and knew he just had to get it. When it came to Casey, there were many impulses that ran through him and this ring was just another one. "I'll take it."_

"_Fantastic, Sir, she's really going to love you for this…" the Jeweler decided to put his own two cents in. _

_Derek sighed a bit happily, "That's what I'm hoping for." The Jeweler rang up the price and Derek had a mini-heart attack. "Holy shit!" he yelped and all the people in the store looked at him. He quieted down and stared at that ridiculously expensive price, "Wow." He definitely could afford it with all the odd jobs he'd had since high school and all he did was save up over the years. And at this price, he was really risking it now._

"_Sir, do you still want to get it?" the Jeweler asked reluctantly._

_Derek knew then and there that he loved her. There was no second guessing or finding the need to believe it because this in front of him was enough proof. If this wasn't love then he didn't know what the hell it was. "Yeah, I'm still going to get it."_

_--_

"_Hurry up, Casey."_

"_Hold on, Impatient." She muttered from inside his closet. Chuckling, he went over to his dresser's drawer and reached all the way to the back where took out the black velvet box. He smirked as he opened it and all he could think was how much she was going to love it. He went ahead and hid it all the way in the back of his drawer and closed it back up. As much as he wanted to give it to her now, he knew he wanted to wait till he was absolutely sure she wanted this just as badly as he did. "Okay, I'm ready."_

_He was in a trance at her beauty. How she managed to look good in anything she wore was beyond him and this dress just made his birthday all the more special, "Whoa…"_

_She smiled and walked over to him to which he immediately wrapped his arms around her waist to pull her closer; her arms around his neck, "So I take it that you think I'm hot?"_

"_Sexy was the word floating around in my mind…" she leaned over and gave him one of those kisses that leaves you winded thereafter. "You sure we gotta go to this stupid dinner thing? I'd rather just stay here with you…"_

"_Everyone's there already." She fussed, "They're waiting for us."_

_He wrinkled his nose, "Fine."_

_She gave him another quick peck and wiped it off with her thumb, "So you sure you liked that camera I got you?"_

"_Of course," he assured her, "I really needed one if it's going to be in my future." He decidedly chose to maybe bring it up again, "Speaking of the future--" both their cell phones rang and immediately they knew they were being rushed out. He cursed under his breath, "Let's just go, Case."_

"Yeah," she laughed.

_A smirk appeared instantly on his face, "Give the birthday boy is kisses first..."_

"_Alright," she got even closer to his face where her lips lightly hovered over his, "You know I can't resist you…"_

- - - -

Yeah, he was absolutely in love with her.

--

Because Casey didn't want to take that ring off, came the thoughts of what happened just hours earlier; a stupid meaningless fight that shouldn't have even happened to begin with. She didn't want to fight with him and neither did she like being away from him. She remembered how miserable she was during those two months they were apart; even how terrible those three weeks were when he avoided her. Casey knew being away from him just isn't going to cut it because she loved him too much and she knew Derek loved her as much also. Well she didn't really know Derek really loved her until Gina told Emily and she overheard.

But most importantly was that they _were_ in love and they hated being away from one another. And the best part about it was that they were already married and she knew Derek was right all along; there was no point to get a divorce because she was confident. Confident in their relationship and what they were going to have in this relationship could only get stronger.

--

The thought then ran in his mind about the things she told Gina. Things about how she didn't know where their relationship would go or if they grew apart. She doubted them and that only made him angrier. Once again he couldn't understand why he wanted this more than she did. Why he was the first one to actually admit there was something between them. Why he was the one who wanted this. Why he realized he loved her enough to buy her a ring while she had the hardest time finding something for him on his own birthday. It was because she had doubts from the beginning; from back when she wanted them to be friends because she wanted to avoid the drama. That still didn't change how he felt about her. And that's what was sad. Here he was realizing he became a whole new person because of her. This same her who didn't want the same things he did because she was worrying about the future. It was then that he realized he didn't need this in his life. He didn't need someone that was going to wait for something to go wrong. He didn't need someone who thought the worst.

"If she wantsss thisss divorce…Imma gonna give it to'd her. I don't need her!" He slurred to the guy next to him, who didn't really give a damn. He got off his stool and sang, "Divorce! Divorce! Whoo-hoo! Divorce!" as he got into his car and terribly drove to Casey's.

--

"I don't want a divorce!" Casey yelled out loud.

Emily and Gina were in unison once more at the outburst of their friend, "What?!"

"Emily. Gina. I don't know want to divorce him. I want to stay married to Derek!" Casey said excitedly. She took her cell phone out and dialed his number; he didn't answer again so she began to speak to his voicemail that didn't want to hear from her, "Derek! I don't want to divorce you. I thought this over. I don't want to divorce. I don't. I love youuu," she had a slight slur due to her little buzz, "I love you, Derek, and I want to make this marriage work. Yes. I. Do. I want to stay ma--" she groaned, "Dammit. Stupid voicemail cut me off!" She looked at Gina, "Could you call Sam and ask him if Derek's home?"

Gina did as she asked, "Baby, is Derek there? No? Alright!" Gina groaned, "I'm not even talking to guys! I'm just here with Casey and Emily! Shut up, please! Bye!" she got quiet, "Did you get my popsicles? Okay, good! I love you. Bye." She quickly let out then hung up and looked at Casey, "No, Derek's not there."

Casey frowned. "Casey, I'm sure he's just clearing his head." Emily assured her.

Casey started to cry out hysterically, "Yeah! Clearing his head of all things Casey Venturi!" she brought her head down on her arms and started to sob lightly.

--

Shockingly Derek made it to Casey's safely but stumbled as he walked up to her door. He sloppily knocked and there opened the person he was looking for, "Hey, Lindsay!"

She smiled at him, "Hey, Der--" he interrupted her greeting by kissing her then and there.

--

"It's not my fault I over think things!" she cried out, "Blame my parents! They made me! Stupid genes! Now I made a mistake and Derek won't even talk to me! He won't even answer because he probably wants a divorce too!"

Emily rubbed her back, "Casey, you don't know that. He's just thinking right now. He needed some space to think."

"Yeah, Casey," Gina joined in to comfort her, "Emily's right. He's just thinking right now. He's just scared of losing you. That's all."

"Just like I lost him!" she broke into hysterical tears.

Emily looked at Gina, "Let's go take her home…" Casey started to cry even louder and people started to stare, "Now. Let's take her home now, Gina." Casey let out a few screams, "Please!"

--

"Alright, Sweetie, we're at your door." Gina assisted her, "Are you going to be okay now?"

Casey nodded and sniffled lightly, "Yes. I just need to talk to Derek tomorrow. I need to tell him."

Gina smiled and gave her a hug, "You guys will be okay."

"Thanks, Gimily."

"No problem. Give me and Emily a call tomorrow, alright?" she nodded. "K, Sweetie. Bye."

"Bye."

Gina walked back to Emily's car and raised an eyebrow at the sloppily parked car in front of her old apartment building. "Hmm…" she got into the passenger seat and looked at Emily; eyebrow still raised, "Isn't that Derek's car?" she pointed behind them.

Emily looked over, "Oh yeah, it is. That's weird." Then a bright smile graced her face as she nodded, "I bet he came to work things out with Casey too! Oh, goodness. So romantic!"

Gina pretended to cry happy tears, "See. It always works with them. Goodness this is just like a movie; a disturbing but cute movie."

"You got that right."

--

Casey walked a slow march to her bedroom. One she hardly saw nowadays because she was always at Derek's. Right now she still rather be there than here. She was getting used to being over there so often and she really wanted to go back as soon as possible. But for right now she couldn't really think straight. She needed sleep. Casey dropped onto her bed not even changing into her pajamas because she was that tired. Not too soon after she fell into a deep sleep, awaiting the morning.


	15. A Wooden Spoon and a Bottle of Febreze

**Disclaimer: I own nothing at all. **

* * *

Casey awoke on her bed and she was nothing but happy that it was morning. A new day; a new start to fix what happened the day before. She only hoped Derek was home so she could talk to him. She needed to talk to him because she needed to clear up the mess that _was_ yesterday. Fighting with him left a bad taste in her mouth and fixing it was her main priority. This morning. This morning she was going to fix it. She demanded that she do so.

She reached up and rubbed her eyes, pulling back her hand and still she saw that wedding ring on her finger. It made her smile. It made her happy and she knew if she wasn't being so stupid and stubborn that she'd be waking up next to Derek right now. Oh, how waking up to Derek felt like the the most perfect way to start her days. The way he held her close but not too close that it was suffocating. The way she had something real to rest her head on at night. She loved it. She loved him and that's what was important. Casey loved him and she was confident in that. Confident in their relationship.

She brought her arms up to stretch and she knew it was time to get out of bed and go find her husband; the husband that she loved and wanted to stay married to. Yeah, she absolutely wanted to stay married to him.

She opened her door and the first thing she saw was Lindsay zooming right past her. "Lindsay?" Casey raised an eyebrow and followed her out into the living room.

Lindsay had the front door open and her suitcase sitting outside, "Hey, Casey." She panted, "I'm sorry I can't talk. I really gotta go before I miss my flight." She spoke quickly without breathing.

Then Casey remembered. She wasn't home often and things sorta slipped her mind. "Oh right. You're going to California."

Lindsay nodded from outside the door, "Yeah, I overslept and I'm completely scatterbrain right now. Ugh! I'm going to be so late!" She grabbed her suitcase and setting it ready to roll on it's wheels, "I really have to go! I'll see you in a month. Bye!"

"Bye!" Casey closed and locked the door for her. "Hm," she thought and smiled a perky smile, "Lindsay's gone. That means we can come over here now." She went over and made some much needed coffee then sat at the kitchen table sorting through some piled up mail. Mail she hadn't seen in forever and she knew she really had to go through them. Bills started to plague her. Her hands stumbled on a familiar addressed letter, "Oh Dad!" she was ready to rip it open until she was startled by a loud thud. As far as she knew, she was home alone. She looked around the place and her heart started to pound. There came a louder crash and Casey became scared, dropping the letter back onto the table.

She cautiously got up and grabbed a wooden spoon of all things and crept her way toward the noise. It was coming from Lindsay's room apparently, "Don't tell me she left someone in here…" she slowly paced and reached slowly to open the door. It opened and there stood a freaked out Derek. Casey let out a sigh of relief, "It's just you. I thought it was a burglar." She let out a laugh and he didn't, instead he just stared at her with nervousness in his eyes. Immediately Casey realized where he was exactly. Derek stood in her apartment and it wasn't in her room of all places. She raised a fearful eyebrow, "De-Derek, wh-what are you doing in Lindsay's room?" She watched his facial expression go from nervousness to guilt in the matter of seconds. Casey felt her heart thump more erratic as the wooden spoon dropped onto the floor. "Derek, please tell me you didn't..." she stammered timidly.

He looked up and took a step toward her and she quickly took disease-fearing step back, "Casey…"

She immediately read it in his features. She saw that guilt and she saw that he knew he did something he shouldn't have done. Her heart broke in an instant and she found herself not knowing what to do. She was becoming disoriented."Oh my God," she ran a hand through her hair, "you did." Casey stormed out and away from him but he quickly chased after her, grabbing her elbow to bring her attention toward him, "Get the hell off of me, Derek!" she yanked her arm out of his grasp. "Son of bitch!" she muttered loudly as she pushed him away with impressive force, making her way back to her kitchen to get out of his sight. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't think straight, and her mind started to run images in an instant.

He shook it off and went back to follow her, "Casey, I hardly remember anything last night! I know I got drunk," he looked down at his feet as he tried to remember the things that occurred the night before. He did get drunk with all those shots he took. He was upset and he remembered he wanted to come here. "I came here. And Lind--" he stopped talking because he remembered he kissed her and after that was a blur. He could only assume it was what Casey thought it was. "Shit."

Casey took a seat on the kitchen table and brought her head in her hands, "Why would you do this?" she said quietly; her voice shaking dramatically with hurt and anguish. "How could you do this to me?"

Immediately Derek knew he'd hurt her pretty bad if she got really quiet that way and he felt horrible. He felt like a piece of him just died because of what he did to her. Usually Casey would get in that girl punch and smack mood when he'd done something jokingly dumb and now here he was. Hurting her was something he never wanted to do and now he did it. He just cursed the fact he got so drunk the night before. He took the seat in front of her, staring directly at her. She wouldn't even look at him instead she stared down at her hands the whole time. "Casey, I don't know what I was thinkin--"

"Of course you didn't!" She threw him a bitter laugh, "You never think, Derek. You always do _that_ instead of using your stupid head." He didn't respond and finally she looked up at him, shaking her head as a tiny tear fell from her eye, "We had one stupid ass fight, Derek. We had _one_ stupid ass fight." Her voice stretched out sadly, "Now you ruined everything!"

"Hey!" Derek was a bit offended now, "I didn't ruin shit because you wanted this damned divorce to begin with! If you weren't so hell bent on getting it then we wouldn't even be here right now!"

Casey stared in disbelief at how he turned this around on her, "So this is all my fault now?" he nodded, "That's bullshit, Derek, because you didn't have to go and do this! You didn't have to sleep with my roommate!" they both cringed, "We still had 5 months left before we had to get divorce and now because you were such a stupid son of a bitch, we can get it now!"

"I don't know why you're so angry." His voice had smugness written all over it, "You wanted this and you should be happy! All you did was bitch and moan about how you didn't see our relationship going anywhere--"

"No!" Her eyes narrowed as she gasped angrily. "I did no such thing!" she snapped at him.

It was his turn to throw her a bitter laugh, "Right because when you say things like we can't stay in a marriage because you don't where we'll go. Or that bullshit you said about us just being some jump on hormones or something? Or the best one you said," he put his finger to his mouth and recalled it, "Oh yeah, we were forced into feeling this way, right?" she felt incredibly stupid after he spoke every word, "Which means my feelings and your feelings were lies?"

She shook her head with massive annoyance at the way he was coming at her, "They weren't lies, Derek. And stop turning this around on me!"

"I pretty much did you a favor!" he snapped at her this time.

"Really? You did _me_ a favor?" he nodded, "Funny thing…" she managed a pathetic laugh, "while you went and got wasted and ruined this little thing we had going, I realized that I wanted to stay married to you." He furrowed his brows and was clearly taken aback, "Yeah, Derek. While you were out trying to do _me_ a favor, I went out and thought about us and I realized you were actually right for once. Yeah, I really did and now here we are. You wanted to give me a divorce and I wanted to stay married…ironic isn't it?" He stared down at his feet, "I even left you a nice and pretty message telling you what I wanted and I woke up this morning ready to go over to your place and tell you. But what do I have here in front of me?" Her voice more sour as she continued, "The stupidest son of a bitch I have ever met."

"Okay," he was really hurt by her words, "I know I just messed up, Casey, but that was really uncalled for."

One bitter snort after the other, "Uncalled for? Really?"

He nodded and glared at her. Without thinking he just had the urge to let it all out, "Yeah, Casey! It is all uncalled for because if it weren't for _you_, we wouldn't be in any of this. We wouldn't be together in this relationship; we wouldn't be fighting about this divorce because we wouldn't even be married! Yeah! This," he brought his arms out to motion their surrounding, "is _all_ your fault. For once, Casey," he groaned aloud, "this is all your fault!"

She sat up straight in her chair and her eyebrows arched at his accusations, "Wh-what the hell are you talking about, Derek? What do you mean this is my fault?"

"You, oh sweet wife of mine," he muttered through a tight sarcastic smile, "wanted to marry _me_." She looked down and ran a hand through her hair, "Yeah, Casey," he got closer to throw it in her face, "you brought up the idea. You wanted to marry me and I accepted. If it weren't for you, we would have never gotten married. So who's the stupid son of a bitch now?"

Casey wasn't even listening to anything he was saying anymore instead she tried to go over what he told her. Then it started to flutter back to her now. Vaguely, she could see them at the bar and it was still a bit hazy. "Oh my God…you're right."

-_ - - -  
_

_After they left Sam and Gina's room, they took the elevator down to the casino floor. The first thing they went to look for was the bar and they found it; sloppily, they walked their way over there and sat on the stools._

"_Hey! Mr. Bartender man!" he came over to them._

"_What can I get you two, sir?" _

"_Can we gets a like two beers, please?" Derek begged. _

"_Sure," the bartender let out a laugh, "I need to see ID's first." Derek pulled out his wallet and Casey rummaged through her back for her license. _

_Derek pulled his out and showed the bartender, "This. This right here is me," he stated matter-of-factly, "I'm not lying. It's really me. Olga gave me this." _

_The bartender shook his head and laughed, "I believe you." He turned to look at Casey's license and checked his watch, "I'm sorry, sweetheart, but it's still 11:45. You're still underage and I could lose my job if I gave you a drink." Casey frowned and dropped her head on her arms, "In 15 minutes I can give you a beer, okay?" he heard her start to cry, "I will! I promise, okay? Fifteen minutes."_

_Derek frowned too at Casey's sadness and looked at the bartender, "I'll just wait for mines in the 12 o'clock time, k? So Casey's not by her'd self."_

_The bartender smiled at the two, "You're a good boyfriend." Derek nodded in agreement and the bartender moved on to the next customer. _

_Casey lifted her head and raised an eyebrow, "You has a boyfriend?" _

_Derek wrinkled his nose, "NO!" he yelled in her ear._

_She covered her ears, "Stupid! That's hurtsss!" she buried her head in her arms again, "I'm thirsty! I want more drinks!!"_

_Derek groaned really loud, "YOU HAS TO WAIT, CASEY!" he heard Casey crying and he softened in an instant, "Sorry I keeps yelling at you," he rubbed her back, "Don't cry! OKAY?!" he yelled again and she cried even more, "Sorry," he whispered._

"_I is a loser!" she whined, "I is a loser!" she brought her hand up, "I has a blue hand! I'm a smurf like you says, Derek! No one likes me!" she hid her hand again. "I don't has a boyfriend! Even you has a boyfriend, Derek!"_

"_I DON'T HAS A BOYFRIEND!" he yelled again and she cried even louder. "Sorry," he whispered, "Stop crying, k?"_

_She cried louder, "Nobody likes me Casey! They only likes you! Everyone likes Derek Venturi!"_

_Derek furrowed his eyebrows sadly, "Everybody likes Casey too!" He nodded and needed to assure her, "We all likes Casey! Not just Derek they likes. They likes Casey too!"_

"_Yeahhhhh, right," she scoffed and brought her head out of hiding to look at him, "Except you! You hates me Derek! Derek hates Casey!"_

_He shook his head like a stubborn kid, "Nah-uh! No Derek don't! Derek likes Casey!" Casey, too, shook her head like a stubborn kid. "Yes-huh! He doessss! He doess, Casey! He likesss Casey!! I promised!!"_

_Casey's face grew bright in an instant, "Really?!" he nodded rapidly like a dog, "Derek do?"_

_Nodding continues, "YUP!" he yelled and got closer to her ear, "DEREK LIKES CASEY!" then he whispered softly, "Derek likes Casey a lot." Casey turned her head and her lips met Derek's in a drunken kiss. She brought her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to where he stumbled off his stool and had her lean back against the bar. Derek returned it forcefully but Casey pulled back, "Hey!" he whined._

_Casey gave him a few more kisses leading up to his ear, "I wanna married you because you likes me," she whispered, "You wanna married me?"_

_He pulled back and grinned. "Yeah!" he gave her a quick kiss, "I likes you a lot! I wanna married you, too!!"_

"_Really?!" she beamed, "You wanna married me too?!" He nodded rapidly again. "YAY!! Kisses! More kissys!" she pulled his head down for more kisses. _

"_Yeah," he mumbled during one of their many drunken kisses, "I wanna married you."_

"_Now?!" she excitedly expressed._

"_Yeah! Let's go now!!" he mirrored her excited expression._

"_Okay!!" she looked around at the people then back at Derek, "Wait! We have to announces it first!"_

_Derek looked around too, "Alright!!"_

"_We're getting married!!" Casey yelled at the top of her lungs. "I'm getting married!" she grabbed Derek by his shirt collar, "We're getting married, Derek!"_

- - - -

"No…" she said quietly to herself as she buried her head in her hands. "This is all my fault."

Derek could see how torn she was about this new revelation. "Yeah…" he said quietly not trying to rub it in her face. Just a few minutes ago he was tempted to just throw it in her face but he still hated seeing her hurt. Right now that is still what she was: hurt.

Casey was still beating herself up about it until she had realization hit her. "Again," she looked up at him and he furrowed his brows at her, "You did it again…" she muttered through her teeth.

"Did wh-what?" he stammered nervously.

"You promised you weren't keeping anything from me, Derek." Breathing was at a new level of erratic now, "You promised that you knew nothing else but it's obvious you did." She shook her head in disappointment, "You know, the first few times I let it slide but this was big and for you to keep it from me…" she looked at him and her body started to shake with the anger building up, "then you go and sleep with my roommate?!"

He was guilty of all she spoke and he just didn't know what to do. "Casey, I'm sorry!" was all he could manage to say.

Casey shrugged and voice trembled dramatically as she spoke, "Yeah, you probably are and you worked pretty damn fast to get us this divorce--"

Derek's breathing had started to become just as irregulars at hers was. The words that just came out her mouth had stung pretty badly. "Wait!" he interrupted to get her to stop talking and she did, "But you just said you didn't wa--"

She busted out in hysterical laughter. Her voice was trembling no more and she said the words just as smug as he ever could be. "Are you fucking kidding me?" that immediately felt like a big slap in his face or a hard kick to his stomach. "Yeah, I didn't want the divorce but you broke the law there. You committed adultery! So great you did your job to get it and now we can get it." She stood up, "Now get the hell out of my house and I'll get our paper work so I can finally get the divorce. _We_ can finally get this divorce."

"Fine!" he stood up and without another word, they both made their way toward the door and all Derek could think was how strong she was being about this whole thing. Sure she was angry but he expected to be hit more rather than a weak shove or even more tears from her. Not that one drop that she gave him…no. It was as if it didn't phase her to any extent. Just before he left, he had something he felt he needed to say, "Casey?"

She stopped the door from closing and gave him an ear, "_What_, Derek?"

He shook his head and smiled sadly toward her, "I don't really think you're upset that I did what I did." Her eyebrows furrowed almost immediately, "Yeah, you may have said you realized you wanted to stay in this marriage but really what I think you wanted was for me to screw it up. I think all along you've been waiting for me to do something stupid like this just so you could get the divorce. I think you've been waiting for this." He nodded to himself, "Yeah, I think I figured you out, Casey. Till this day you're still that same girl who has to follow every single little rule; never allows herself to have any fun. School, work, school, work. It's always the same with you, Casey. I thought you became someone else just like I did for you." He shook his head and pursed his lips, "Nope. Still scared and that's the reason you haven't found anyone in your life, Casey. You complained and whined about not having anyone. The only person to blame for that is the person you see in the mirror. Learn to live Casey. Please." He pleaded with the smug pouring out in his voice, "Please."

Casey glared at him, "You were someone else for me, Derek?" he nodded and let threw him a pathetic snort, "Yeah, you became even more stupid than I already knew you to be. Someone who wasted 7 months of my time and 2 month of my life; that's who you were so don't go and pretend like you know exactly who I am because I don't need that from anyone; especially from you."

Derek let out another laugh. A lot more bitter than before, "Out of all the people, Casey, you need to hear it from me. I'll probably be the only one that's honest enough to tell you."

"Yeah," she shook her head; still laughing, "just like you were honest enough to tell me about things I couldn't remember, right?" he didn't answer her, "Exactly. So keep your stupid logical inquiries to yourself. See you soon, _ex_-husband."

He felt anger boiling within him yet again, "Can't _wait_, _ex_-wife." Casey slammed the door on him while he huffed over to his terribly parked car. "Ugh!" he angrily got into the driver's seat, "Alcohol! Damn you to hell!"

--

Casey looked around her apartment and felt disgusted all of a sudden. There was something she felt she needed to do to help her frustration go away. "Oh, I know." She ran to her room and ran back out holding a Febreze bottle. She wasted no time in spraying down the whole damned place. The couch, the kitchen area, the hallway…she even invaded Lindsay's room and unscrewed the bottle and spilled it all around her floor and bed. "Stupid, Lindsay..." she muttered through her teeth, "You think you know someone and bam! They sleep with your husband. Scatterbrain my ass! Ugh! Stupid Gina for moving out…stupid Sam for making her move in with him…stupid Vegas and alcohol…stupid Judge Dumbass…everyone is just stupid!" She felt like it was clean enough due to the whole place lingering with the refreshing scent of Lavender Vanilla & Comfort.

She made her way back to her room, where she neatly put the Febreze down in its original spot, and slowly dropped on her bed. "Ugh, today is just _not_ a good day." She stared up at her ceiling, thinking that it would have answers for her and sadly it didn't. It made her slowly start to cry as Derek's words started to flood back in her head and she knew once again he was right. On many _recent _occasions, Derek Venturi was seemingly right. But for right now, she could care less if the things he told her were right; if his accusations were on the right track. She was angry and she was pissed. She was hurt. "Not upset," she scoffed to herself, "stupid son of a bitch. Of course I'm upset!" she screamed and wiped her tears on her blanket, "Learn to live, Casey." She mocked him and suddenly got quiet. Finally she threw the covers over her whole body, "Learn to live without sleeping with other girls, you jackass!" she muttered aloud as tears ran down her face, "Stupid idiot! Stupid slutbag Lindsay for leaving! I need to kick her ass once she gets back here..." she started to growl and boy had no other girl made her feel this way before, "Stupid cute hair. I'm _so_ going to pull every strand out until that bitch is bald..."

So she cursed and cried and cursed and cried until she curse and cried herself into a deep sleep.

--

"Baby?" Sam said softly as he and Gina cuddled on the couch. It was one of the many times they were allowed to with Derek not being home. And these times were much too precious.

"Yeah?" she flipped through the TV channels until she reached the Lifetime Movie Network.

"You really don't want to get married?"

Gina turned to look at him and smiled sincerely at him. "Of course I eventual--" she would quickly be interrupted by a loud slamming of the front door. Both Sam and Gina sat up quickly to see an angry and red Derek Venturi, who wasted no time in storming into his own room and slamming yet another door that startled the both of them. "Whoa, what the hell happened?"

"I have no--"

"SAM! GINA!" Derek yelled out and brought himself out of his room, stomping his way over to happy couple on the couch. "Don't you two _ever_ get married!" without a response, he brought himself angrily back into his room and slammed the door shut for a third time.

Sam and Gina sat back onto the couch and it was majorly awkward. Yeah, not even the TV could fill what was this awkward silence. It was convenient for them to have the personal marriage talk alone... only to have it be cursed right in front of them.

"Hmm…" Gina wanted to break the awkwardness, looking down at her nails.

Sam continued as he stared at the white wall. "Yeah..."

"I love you."

"I love you too.

"Lunch?"

"Totally."


	16. Bruce and Demi Slap Goodbyes

**AN: I'm sorry for how long this took to update. Final week of school and I've been stressing. Then the stress makes me lose my funny. **

**But I am updating now...and remember things are still on a humorous side. ;)**

lol I dunno why this made me laugh from the "Things that go bump in the night" episode.

Edwin: "Marti tells me that she saw you and Derek playing hide and seek last night..." I couldn't stop laughing. Stupid Dasey innuendos.

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned. **

* * *

"Casey, Sweetie, you gotta get up at some point. You've been crawled up in a ball for the last 2 days," Gina tried her hardest to get a depressed Casey up.

"I don't wanna."

"Ugh, Casey, please…" Emily tried, "At least eat something. Let's go out to dinner… our treat!" Emily mouthed 'your treat' to Gina, who immediately shook her head "No".

"I don't want dinner." She huffed like a kid with a tantrum, "I want ice cream and I want Lindsay to get her ass back here so I can give her a piece of my mind."

"Oh, when that girl gets back…" Gina eyes narrowed much too small as she grumbled, "she'll get more than a piece of my mind."

Emily eyes narrowed as well but brought her attention back to this helpless Casey. Lindsay killing could wait later. "Casey, please get up..." she tried again, "This is unhealthy. You haven't been out of bed for 2 days and you haven't eaten."

"Ice Cream!" Casey whined like child, "Ice Cream!"

"No, Casey. You need real food." Emily demanded. Casey threw the covers over her again. "Ugh!" she looked over at a thinking-hard Gina, "What are you doing?" she muttered angrily.

Gina's face grew bright as she began to speak, "I think I just came up with something I wanna say when I first see Lindsay…" she said proudly.

"And what would that be?" Emily raised an eyebrow.

Gina put on a glaring and angry acting face, "You are one sad little bit--" Casey started to cry out hysterical tears from underneath her blanket.

"Gina!" Emily interrupted her for Casey's sake.

"What?!" Gina questioned with furrowed brows, "That girl is!"

--

"D!" Sam knocked on the door, "I'm about to go grab food. You want?"

"Yeah!" He, too, huffed like a child, "I want a whole box of pizza. Only for me!" Derek was always one for overeating when he was nervous, angry, or upset. This Casey ordeal was no exception. He was going to eat and eat until his void was filled.

"K."

--

"Who the hell are you texting?" Gina asked Emily as they sat on Casey's couch.

She continued to text while she grinned happily, "None of your business."

"Hey!" Gina frowned, "You're supposed to tell me these thi--" Casey came and slowly paced out of her room, "Casey!"

Emily turned her head to look at her crappy looking friend, "Finally." Casey dropped on the couch between her two friends, "You up to go grab some grub now?" she begged more than asked. Emily and Gina were pretty much starving but they couldn't leave their friend at a time like this…they were tempted to but they didn't.

Casey shook her head, "I'm not hungry." She looked at both Emily and Gina, "Could you guys just come with me to get my divorce papers?" she murmured quietly.

Emily and Gina frowned, "Sure." "Of course."

--

Derek was on his seventh slice, "I don't understand why she's so upset." He folded his big slice and positioned it; ready to eat, "She wanted this and I gave it to her."

"You cheated on her, D." Sam shrugged, "She has every reason to be upset."

Derek freaked out at his very obvious friend, "I know that! You couldn't just give it to me for 2 seconds!" He stuffed the rest of his slice in his mouth, "DammitmmI'msuchmma Jackass!"

Sam took a bite of his own pizza slice, "We all know you would never do that if you were sober. You love Casey."

Derek nodded and downed some of his beer, "I do." He cleared his throat of all the masticated pizza, "I would've never done this to her. It also doesn't help that I turned everything around on her and told her she should blame herself for how everything turned out. I mean, sure, this wedding was her fault but I couldn't have accepted. It takes two to salsa--"

"Tango," Sam coughed out to correct.

"Pansy," Derek coughed as his eyes narrowed, "Of course you'd know something like that." Sam was about to defend himself but Derek kept talking, "I could've said no to her proposal. I could have even told her from the start…"

"Why didn't you?"

Derek shrugged, "I don't really know. I just know she was really pissed off." He shook his head, "I'm so stupid. I really screwed this up didn't I?" Sam didn't say anything instead just took his own sip of beer, "Shit. She wanted to stay married. I screwed it up over one stupid fight. This isn't her fault. This is all my fault. I am a stupid son of a bitch." He grabbed a napkin and wiped off his grease, "I gotta go talk to her. I can't just give up without a fight, Sam. No. I know I screwed this up but I gotta go beg for forgiveness or something."

"Whipped…" Sam coughed out a laugh.

"Shut the hell up." He ran to his room and ran back out to the bathroom to shower.

Gina came through the door minutes later, "Hey, baby," she quickly grabbed a piece of pizza and ate it, "Finally, real food!" she mumbled between chews. "Delicious pizza…cheese…" she took another bite, "chicken and pineapple…" Sam raised an eyebrow, "What? I'm starving, Baby," she muttered, "We got a depressed girl over there who only wants ice cream," her nose wrinkled, "Dammit…I shoulda stole a pint…"

Sam couldn't help but smile at his crazy girlfriend. He stood and gave her a quick peck, "So what'd you girls do?"

Gina took a seat on his lap and wiped her hands with a napkin, "What else could we do?" Sam shrugged, "We sat around until Casey got her ass up and out of bed. How about you two? How's that cheating son of a bitch handling this?"

"Baby, he feels terrible, okay?" she snorted, "He does!" Sam defended his friend, "And he knows he screwed up. He wants to go fix this…"

"But Casey already got the Divorce Papers?" Gina said sadly.

Yeah, she was upset about what Derek did but she wanted nothing more than for them to fix this. She wanted them from the start. And secretly…she wanted them even before the whole accidental marriage happened. But it was because she believed she was sick in the mind. She saw something between them ever since that first day she met him, 'cause that first day brought on Derek/Casey bickering. The best kind of bickering out there…well other than her and Sam.

- - - -

"_So you definitely have to meet my best friend, Emily." Casey smiled, "She can be a bit crazy too."_

"_So you're calling me crazy?" Gina asked seriously with a raised eyebrow. Casey blushed with nervousness, thinking she'd already offended her new roommate. Gina busted out into hysterical laughter, "I'm kidding, Casey!" Casey let out a breath of relief, "Crazy is my middle na—who are those two hotties?" She nodded behind Casey. _

_Casey turned her head to see Sam and Derek heading their way. She sighed with massive annoyance, bringing her attention back to Gina, "Ugh. The blonde one is Sam and the stupid one is Derek, my--"_

"_Hey, Casey." "Hey prude." _

"_Hi, Sam." Casey's greeting smile turned into a growl almost immediately. "Hey Dumbass." Derek chuckled at her repetitive comeback. She shook her head and looked over at Gina, "You guys, this is my roommate, Gina. Gina, this is Sam and a waste of perfectly good air." _

"_Oh!" Derek laughed sarcastically, "I'm a waste of perfectly good air? People already bow down to me at this University! No one knows who you are!" _

_Casey stood up from her chair and went for the battle, "People know who I am! People like--"_

"_Emily and Tina?" he quickly retorted to tick her off even more._

_Casey let out a frustrated scream as people stopped and stared. "It's Gina!" _

_Sam took a seat next to Gina, who was intrigued by this tension-filled scuffle. "So what's the story with them? They just get out of a relationship or had a bitter break-up or something?" she murmured quietly to her new acquaintance. _

"_Derek and Casey? Relationship? " Sam coughed out, "They are step-siblings."_

_"No way..." her eyebrow rose, "Could've fooled me..." she started laughing to herself. _

_"Wh-what's so funny?" Sam asked, joining in her chuckle._

_"If you knew what was going through my mind, you'd think I was sick..." she settled her snickering and listened again._

"_You are so damned difficult!" Derek groaned aloud._

"_You are so damned infuriating!" Casey cried out._

"_Come on, Sammy. Let's go!" he stormed off. _

"_By-bye, Gina." Sam stammered. _

_Gina smirked, "Bye, Sam." She brought her attention to a red and flustered Casey, "So that Sam…is he single?"_

- - - -

"Damn." Sam frowned, "Really?"

Gina nodded sadly, "I mean she said she's really going to think about if she wants to sign them. She feels terrible about what happened."

"Just like Derek."

"Well he needs to--"

Derek came out of the shower and saw them, "Hey, Gina." She snorted pathetically to which Derek shook his head and went back into his room.

"He doesn't like the fact that you're still pissed at him."

"I'm not pissed per se. I still see it from his point of view but of course I will side with Casey. I mean he cheated on my best friend!" her nose wrinkled in thought, "Okay, so maybe I am pissed at him still. I just hate that this had to happen. I should've never brought it up with her. Curse Derek and his very persuasive words about finally falling in love. Gah!"

"Don't blame yourself."

Her eyebrows furrowed, "Oh, who said anything about me blaming myself?" She scoffed with a tiny laugh, "I'm not blaming myself…I'm still blaming Derek." They both chuckled together.

Derek came out dressed real sharp to go and fix this problem they were having. "Wish me luck, guys."

"Good luck." They said in unison.

--

There Casey stood in front of Derek's apartment, divorce papers in hand and all she felt was nervous. She stared down at the papers and a part of her hated the fact that she even had them in her hands. Then there was still that part of her that was really upset about Derek and how they left things when they last saw one another, but she just needed to get this over with and move on from this period in her life. She gathered up enough courage to bring her hand up and try to knock on the door. Just before her hand was about to sound it, it opened up. There stood in front of her was Derek, who looked like he was ready to leave. "Casey?" he had a small smile grace his lips, "I was just about to go see you."

--

Gina and Sam's eyes grew wide at one another. "Casey's here?!" Gina squeaked.

--

Casey shook her head, "No need. I'm here." She lifted up the papers, "We need to settle this now." Derek's eyes darted over to the papers and immediately she saw hurt, pain, and anguish blend together in one look; for some stupid reason she felt guilty for putting it there. "So can I come in or were you still planning on leaving?"

--

"She was supposed to think this over!" Gina screamed in a whisper, "I just left her apartment! How the hell did she think this over so quickly?!"

"Come on," Sam blankly looked at her, "This is Casey were talking about."

Gina nodded in agreement, "Yeah, you're right."

--

He shook his head as his eyes were still fixated on the divorce papers, "No. No, come in."

--

"Shit!" Gina and Sam both jumped out of their seats, "They're coming in!" Sam and Gina ran into their bedroom but Gina felt the need to run back out and grab the box of pizza first.

--

They both sat down at the table and Casey laid out the forms in front of them. She had already signed her part of the papers prior to the visit because she was scared that if she saw him she wouldn't want to.

- - - -

"_I don't think I can do this…" Casey stared down at the divorce papers that were laid out on her coffee table. The three girls sat and fixed their focus down at them, "I don't know."_

_Emily leaned and rubbed her friends back to comfort her, "Casey, if you're not sure about this then maybe you really don't want to do this. Maybe you want to forgive him."_

"_Yeah, Casey," Gina shrugged, "Maybe deep down you forgave him for what he did."_

_Casey slouched back onto the couch and brought her knees to her chest as she thought. "I don't know what to do. I don't forgive him. I don't." She expressed with massive confidence, "I know that for sure. I don't ever think I could forgive him for what he did to me."_

"_He was drunk, Casey," Gina offered, "and he didn't know what the hell he was doing. He just thought you really wanted the divorce and he was being irrational. His inhibitions were low--"_

"_So I have to worry about him every time he gets drunk?" she got worked up in an instant, "I have to worry if he's going to be irrational and stupid every time he goes out?" she retorted as Gina and Emily didn't answer. She brought up her hands in frustration, "He committed adultery for crying out loud!" she brought her legs back to normal position and leaned down at the papers; voice much softer, "But for some stupid reason I can't find it in me to sign them…"_

"_Casey, there's no rush…" Emily offered, "You don't have to sign these right now. You don't even have to think about them right now. It's only been 2 days."_

"_Just think about it, Casey. We don't want you to do something just as irrational as Derek did. What sucks is that you're in the right state of mind…" Gina told her, "If you're not certain then maybe it's because you forgive him."_

_Casey sighed in response, "Maybe. I don't know." She groaned aloud, "Why did he have to do this?! Why?!"_

"_I'm sorry Casey, but he did it for you." Gina admitted the truth after all, "You wanted this and stupid Drunk Derek took over and tried to give you what you wanted. It was an incredibly bad impulse."_

"_The worst impulse," she nodded slowly to herself, "he's right, though, all this is my fault."_

_Emily sighed toward her friends, "Stop beating yourself up. It's over and done with and now you're here. You have to deal with now." Her cell phone went off buzzing, "You got--" she checked her phone and started giggling. _

_Gina and Casey stared at her with raised eyebrows. "Who's it?" "Who?"_

_Emily rolled her eyes, "No one but I really have to go."_

"_Hot date?" Gina smirked. Emily gave Casey and Gina a quick hug, "So you're not going to answer me now?" Emily shrugged, "Oh, I see, your lips are paralyzed from all the laughing you've been receiving from your electronic boyfriend." Emily ignored her and walked over to the door._

"_Bye, guys." She looked at Casey, "Think it over, okay?" Casey nodded, "Byee."_

_Casey and Gina said their goodbyes. "Bye, Em." "Blah, blah." Emily rolled her eyes and left._

_Gina sighed and looked over at an a lot-on-the-mind Casey. "Sweetie, you're gonna think it over, right?"_

"_Yeah," Casey nodded, "I really want to think this over."_

_She grinned, "Well great. So I could go home?" Casey nodded with silent laughter. "Oh, Thank God." She let out a sigh of relief, "I need to eat real food! How you haven't eaten for 2 days, Casey, I'll never know." Gina had a look of worry wash over her, "You're gonna eat, right? You're not gonna like faint and then die or anything. You know, I don't want Derek to become a widower, okay?"_

_Casey chuckled lightly at her very weird-a- times friend, "I'm gonna eat."_

"_Promise?"_

"_Promise," she confirmed, "Now get out of here. I got some thinking to do."_

_Gina gave her a hug. "Alright, Casey. Think this over." She rubbed her back, "I know you still love him."_

_Casey pulled back, "Maybe," she shrugged, "Don't mention it to him, okay?"_

"_That bastard is still getting the silent treatment from me so no, I won't tell him." She stood up and headed toward the door, "Casey?" Casey looked at her from the doorway, "Eat."_

"_I will!" she groaned and felt a good joke could come in handy, "Get out, Gina. Go to your girl—boyfriend." Gina glared and made her way toward her car to leave. Casey sighed and headed to her freezer; grabbed her favorite pint of ice cream and sat back on the couch to look at those cursed papers. "Derek Venturi." She spoke his name aloud as she read the papers. "Ugh." Scooping up a spoonful of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Casey brought it into her mouth and thought about him as much as she could. She thought about how much of a change he's gone through when he was with her. No more of that annoying step-brother from hell that tortured her as a daily happy fix. He became the sweetest and most loving person to her. He was a totally different person just like he claimed he was. It was just another one in the right column for Mr. Venturi._

_Not only was he sweet and loving, he was in love with her. He felt something strong for her; none of her boyfriends ever felt that strongly for her. Well none that she knew of. High School boyfriends were those of a temporary fixture for relationships, while college dating was a bust because school was a big time consumer. An accidental marriage brought her accidental love and so far it has been the happiest she has ever been. Ironically she found her happiness with the guy who made her life hell for years. But that was something she learned to look away from. _

_As she thought, she smiled. She smiled thinking about him and everything he's become to her. It's only been two months and her life had been perfect; perfect because she found perfection in a relationship with her accidental husband. Sure he wasn't unflawed. He wasn't ideal. He wasn't a genius. He was just Derek Venturi, who made her laugh; who made her smile; who made her angry but made up for it within seconds. She loved him. It was that simple. _

_She made her decision, "I'm not go--" her eyes then landed on some photos that sat on top of her TV. They were photos of her and her family and then those of her roommate, Lindsay. She started to run the images through her mind and all she could see was them together. Together in Lindsay's room, on Lindsay's bed doing the same things that she and Derek shared together. It hurt. It hurt really bad to see the images vividly as she imagined what it was like. She hated it. She hated her. She even hated him. She still couldn't believe he would do this. Right now, Casey could care less if he was drunk or not in his right mind because he did it. He cheated…he committed adultery…and it only made her angry inside. He hurt her. He broke her heart. _

_She put her ice cream down and without thinking…she signed them. Casey took a deep breath and immediately felt like she made the biggest mistake of her life…but it was done. She did it and there was no turning back now. She signed them. She made her decision. _

_Now it was Derek's turn. _

- - - -

"I marked an X where you need to sign," she pointed it out for him on the papers.

"Okay." A quiet Derek stared down at the line that requested his signature and he just wanted nothing more than to rip them up and fix their relationship. But he knew this was real and it was time to get it over with. She was already ready for this. It only meant he had to be also.

He had the pen ready in his hand as he brought it down to hover over that line. Just as the ink ball was about to touch the paper, his hand started to shake. Casey watched him with furrowed brows, "Derek, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." He assured her as his eyes were still fixed on that line. "I can do this," he assured his own self and brought down the pen to hover over the line once more. The shakes were back and it started to make him angry. Here was his opportunity to get the divorce that they needed; that she needed, and here he was having problems just signing his name. He slammed the pen on the table and it startled Casey as he turned to look at her, "Casey, I don't know if I can do this."

She ran a nervous hand through her hair and she wanted nothing more than to just tell him she didn't want to do it. Her eyes scanned his face it she saw sincerity from all over and there a part of that was going to just say it…until she envisioned the two of them together again. The same hands that touched her touched Lindsay too. She felt sick to her stomach once more. That part of her that wanted to make it work had gone missing and she knew she couldn't forgive him for what he did. She shook her head, "No. You have to do this." She demanded, "You have to sign these papers, Derek. I need this divorce and I need to move on from you and you from me."

The demand was gone and all Derek could see was pleading; desperate pleading. "You really want this…" he saw it in her eyes that she did and he didn't have to wait for a reply. He grabbed that pen and fought off the shakes that tried to tell him no and signed his name on the lines that needed it. Derek slid it over to her. "Here."

Casey closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. She looked down at the papers and saw his name signed and now she knew it was real. They were going to be divorced officially and it was over now. It was really over between them. Ever since she was with Derek, she had admitted that she wanted this divorce but when she was going to be signing it, she didn't know how much it was going to hurt her to do it. Bringing herself to move on from him was already too hard for her to do. "So it's over and done with. This marriage is over and done with…" she slowly told herself aloud.

Derek nodded and brought his attention to the ground, "Yeah, Casey, we're divorced. I hope you're happy now."

Casey looked over at him, "Hey," he brought his eyes to focus on her as her eyebrows furrowed at him, "I am _not_ happy, Derek." She expressed in a bitter voice. "I am _not_ happy with how this turned out okay? Don't go and think that I am either because I'm not. And it's going to be a while till I find happiness again." Her voice went softer, "Sure, I wanted to divorce you in 5 months but I thought we would still be together afterward. I thought we were going to be able to work on _us_ as a real relationship. Not one that was formed because a mistaken marriage. So don't say you hope I'm happy because I'm not."

He nodded slowly as he looked down, "Me either."

She sighed and let out a sad laugh that brought his attention back onto her, "You were right, Derek, about everything."

"Right about what?" he asked her with a furrowed brow.

"What you said about me, my life, me being so scared about everything. You're right and what's sad is that you know me better than I do myself sometimes. You, Derek Venturi, know Casey better than I apparently do. I guess when the girls called me dense they really meant it right?" she stifled a laugh.

He physically looked pained as she spoke, "Casey, I didn't really mean any of that. I was just pissed because of all this stuff that happened. That's why I wanted to go see you and apologize for all that I said that morning. I'm not going to ask for forgiveness for what Drunk Derek did because I know that really hurt you." She looked down trying not to remember it, "I just want you to know that I screwed it up and I know I did. Out of all the stupidest things this stupid son of bitch…" he let out a laugh, "has done to you, this is the worst."

"Yeah," Casey nodded along and shared a tiny laugh of her own, "and you aren't so stupid, you know. I say things, too, that I don't mean when I'm angry. You know this." He nodded rapidly to which her eyes rolled, "Thanks a lot for assuring me."

Derek smiled and wagged an eyebrow, "It's the truth ain't it?" Casey chuckled and stood up while Derek did the same. After the past few days, Derek and Casey didn't know how they'd react with one another after everything had gone down. They _certainly_ didn't think they'd be on a comfortable ground; even joking around with another. Everything about this divorce was...amicable. He rubbed the back of his head and shrugged, "So I guess this is it?"

She nodded and offered him a smile, "Yeah. Been a crazy 7 months, huh?"

"Yeah is has…"

Casey tilted her head slightly to look in the direction of Sam and Gina's room, "Sam, Gina, and I know Emily is on speakerphone. I'm about to leave so bye!" she yelled out.

Derek and Casey heard shuffling coming from the room. It opened and there came out an innocent smiling Sam and Gina, who held her cell phone with Emily on the line. "_Gina? Gina? You still there? Why is it is so quiet?! GINA! SAM! What's going on?! Did they mak--" _Gina hung on a rambling Emily.

"Sorry." Sam and Gina said in unison.

Casey let out a laugh, "It's okay, you guys are pretty predictable. Well," she turned her attention to Derek, "I guess I better go drop these off."

He shrugged and decided to just ask. "Do you want me to come with you?" he saw the bit of reluctance on her face, "I guess not. How about I just walk you out?"

"Sure." She looked over at Sam and Gina, "Bye guys. Gina, I'll talk to you later and tell Em too."

Gina sighed, "Fine."

--

They stood outside the door and it was a bit awkward. Derek decided to break the tension, "Since when are we awkward huh, Case?"

She looked over at him and shrugged, "Since we got married, Derek."

He nodded, "Yeah, well I guess I'm back to being your dumbass step-brother."

"And _I_ guess I'm back to being your annoying step-sister." They both shuddered at the thought. Casey wrinkled her nose, "How about we just never call one another that again."

"Fine with me…" he joked and got closer to her ear, "I never really saw you as my step-sister anyway."

She chuckled and got closer to his ear just as he did, "Me either…far from it." She let out a sigh, "Well I gotta go..."

"Yeah," he quietly laughed, "You sure you don't need an annoying co-pilot to come with you?" he offered once more with a bit of desperation in his voice.

Casey knew it was too soon for anything like that, "I'm pretty darn sure, Derek." She gave him half a smile, "So bye?" he nodded and they both became awkward again because they didn't know how to say goodbye. They slowly got closer to one another and awkwardly tried to give one another a goodbye hug. It wasn't too successful as their arms clashed. Once more it hit again and they stopped trying. Derek freaked and the only thing he could think of doing was bringing his hand up. Casey arched her eyebrows and gave him a Goodbye Five, "Okay? Bye."

Derek mentally smacked himself. "Bye…" he choked out and watched her get into the elevator. Once it closed Derek turned around toward his door and let out a frustrated scream. "A Five?! What the _hell _were you thinking, Venturi?! You don't give girls a Goodbye Five! Who the hell does that?!" He groaned aloud to himself, "I do! I gave her a Goodbye Five!" and brought the palm of his hand to his forehead and smacked himself, "Stupid! Stupid! Stu--"

"Derek?"

Derek tensed and turned around to see Casey right behind him. He cleared his throat and tried to pretend nothing happened, "Um...uh… hi, Casey…" he blushed with embarrassment, "I-I thought you left?"

Casey bit her lip to contain her laughter but she didn't want to embarrass him anymore than he already was. "I actually forgot my bag."

He nodded slowly and he started to ramble like an idiot, "Oh. That's why you're back. I see." He put a hand on the doorknob, "Well, come on in," he opened it and immediately he felt the door smack against something hard.

"OW!" "DAMMIT, DEREK!" the two of them opened up to see Sam and Gina on the floor, rubbing the sides of their heads that were obviously attached to the door.

Casey and Derek shook their heads at their two eavesdropping friends. "Well your damned ears shouldn't have been glued to the door, you idiots." Sam and Gina wrinkled their noses.

"Yeah, what he said." Casey threw Derek an agreeing smile. She stepped over the couple to grab her bag and made her way back out the door.

Gina looked over at Sam, still rubbing her head, "You know for two people who just got divorced, you'd think they'd be hating one another instead ganging up on us."

"Exactly right, Baby," Sam scratched his head with his finger as he thought, "They are like that really old actor and actress couple…"

"Who?" Gina looked over and with a raised eyebrow.

"That couple that got divorced…" he started, "and the cougar got married to that Punk'd guy…"

"Bruce Willis and Demi Moore?" Casey offered.

"YEAH!" Sam exclaimed, "You two are like them. They are like BFF's or something." He looked over at a deadpanned Gina, "Wh-what?"

"Why do you always know these things?!"

Derek and Casey rolled their eyes and decided to leave the couple in their spat. He closed the door and watched Casey leave for a second time. And sadly, he had a feeling this would be it for a while. "You didn't forget anything else did you?"

She narrowed her eyes and in thought then nodded, "Yeah," she got closer to him and brought herself in his arms for a real goodbye hug. Casey felt him tense and relax within seconds of each other when he brought his arms to wrap around her tight.

"Waaaay better than a Goodbye Five," he chuckled.

Casey reciprocated and pulled back, "You're not stupid, okay?"

He threw Casey a snort, "If I wasn't so stupid, I'd be doing more than hugging you right now." Casey closed her eyes as her brows arched inward and Derek could tell it wasn't the right thing to say, "Sorry. I shouldn't have brought that up."

She shook her head and offered him a smile, "Things happen for a reason, Derek, and we'll just have to see what happens now." He nodded with a slight smile at that statement. She checked her watch, "Alright, _now_ I really gotta get going." She looked up at him, "Bye, Derek."

"Bye." She walked over to the elevator again, "Hey, Case?" she turned around, "I gotta ask…"

"Anything."

"If I _was_ a burglar that morning," he tried to contain his laughter, "you really think you could've fought me off with that wooden spoon?"

Casey glared at him, "I still have those scissors, you know."

He smiled, "Just kidding. Go ahead and go."

"I'm gone." She got into the elevator and pressed the button, "F.Y.I. It was the first thing I could grab."

The elevator closed and Derek made his way back into the apartment, smiling. He saw Sam and Gina staring at him…well Gina had an eyebrow raised. "What, Gina? What do you have to say now?" he sighed tiredly at the fact she was still mad at him.

She shook her head, "Nothing."

Derek knew she was still a bit upset with him over what he did and as many times as he apologized, she just wasn't ready to forgive him either, "Fine." He looked over at Sam who had his hand raised, "What?"

"Give me a Five." Sam tried to hold his laughter in and in an instant Gina collapsed into laughter.

Derek glared at both of them, "Shut up." He went back into his room and slammed the door shut.

Sam still had his hand up and looked at Gina, "Well don't leave me hanging here..." Gina got up and gave him his Five. "See that's all I was asking for."

* * *

**Sam and Gina make me happy. **

**Anywhoo... so who's coming home next chapter? lol**

**Alright, I will definitely try to get it out sooner. I promise! :)**


	17. How to Deal

**AN: Humor is pretty dang hard to write. I'm finally realizing it now. haha. **

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned.**

* * *

"Alright, guys, what are we watching tonight?" Emily asked as she squatted in front of Casey's DVD collection packed tightly in her box.

Gina stared at her fingernails, "What are our options?"

"Okay, I narrowed it down to The Notebook or Wicker Park." Emily held out both DVD covers to show the girls.

Gina sat up in excitement, "The Notebook!!" she looked over at a sniffling Casey, "Oh, Good Googley Moogley!" she cursed in her head, "Casey, seriously, you're not going to cry again are you?"

Casey shook her head and calmed herself, "No. No crying. I'm f--"

"Ugh!" Gina and Emily groaned aloud, "You're _not_ fine!" they announced in unison.

She glared at Gina and Emily, "I _am_ fine!" she bit her lip in thought then threw herself across the couch and started to sob, "I'M NOT FINE!"

For the past month, Casey went through a hard time but as the days passed, she brought herself to be okay; to _be _fine. The days started to wind down and she just wasn't fine anymore. Nope…not fine at all.

- - - -

_Casey had already dropped off the divorce papers and now it was really real. There was a part of her that felt the need to just go straight home but she wasn't going to choke now and she didn't. They were dropped off; she really did it. She thought the moment Derek signed it, it was real but actually going to drop them off was that moment for her. It was in the courts hands and it was the courts turn to deal with it. The divorce was really going to happen now. Derek and Casey were going to be divorced. It was real. _

_They left one another on good terms but there was still a part of her that really was upset. She was still upset about everything that had gone down. The whole keeping secrets from her; the timing of the decision making; the cheating; the divorce… it all sucked and it was gonna take a while to bounce back. _

_She walked into her empty apartment that night, looking around the place as the silence lingered from all over. "This is my life now. I better get used to it." Just four days ago, she was happily married but it went to shit. "I have to get used to it," she demanded of herself. _

_Dropping the keys off on her coffee table, she headed to her kitchen. Staring at the piled up mail on her table, she realized she's been a wreck. It was time to get back to normal Casey and get her act together. It was a pretty big blunder in her life and it was going to be just another job she had to do to fix it. "I'm fine." She said aloud to herself, "I'm going to be fine." Casey sat quiet, still staring blankly at her table. She started to choke out sobs and immediately dropped her head in her arms, "I'M NOT FINE!" she cried out hysterically. _

_--_

"_She's gotta be home..." Gina laughed nervously as she banged on Casey's door for the hundredth time. "Casey!"_

_Emily brought her eyes away from her cell phone to stare blankly at Gina, "Could you quiet down? You know she has nosy neighbors." _

_Her nose wrinkled, "Dammit. Dammit. Dammit. She better not be dead or anything." Emily's eyes furrowed, "I'm totally not up to going to anymore funerals this year…" _

"_Gina?" her eyes focused on Emily's, "Seriously…what the hell is the matter with you?" she expressed in a completely deadpanned nature. _

_Gina chuckled lightly_, "_I'm just worried about my old room--"_

_Then the idea clicked in Emily's head. "Your keys!" Emily shrieked, "You never gave back your old apartment keys! Don't you still have them?" Gina rummaged through her bag to find her keys that she did have. "Oh, Gina, I take back all the mean things I say about you!" Emily hugged her tightly. _

_Gina put the keys into the keyhole but arched her eyebrows at Emily, "Wait. You say mean things about me?"_

_Emily smiled brightly, "Not at all."_

"_Okay, good." Gina let out a breath of relief. _

_They both slowly paced toward her bedroom as the rest of the apartment reeked of silence. It was the creepy and sad silence too. "Casey?" they knocked lightly on her door. "Casey?" they decided to just open her door and see how their friend was doing. And she was a total wreck. Her blinds were closed completely; only allowing darkness to swim through the room. Casey was wrapped tightly in her blanket, groaning at the little bit of light that entered her bedroom as her friends came in. _

"_Shit." Emily darted over to her and slowly pulled the blanket off of Casey's face, "Casey? You could suffocate like this…"_

"_I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine!" she whined, "Leave me alone!"_

_Gina rolled her eyes, "Casey, please," she pleaded, taking the seat on the edge of her bed as well. "We need you to get up and get out your room."_

"_I'm fine I said!" she sniffled lightly, "I'm fine, guys. I'm okay. I'm just sleepy." _

"_Sleepy for three straight days?" Emily sighed as the tone of her voice was tired of what this was doing to her friend. It was obvious Casey was a mess after this and it was time to get her up and out of it. "Casey, we really hate seeing you like this."_

"_Do you want to talk to Derek?" Gina offered._

_Sitting up from her bed, "No," Casey said with a sad half smile, "There's no reason to anymore. It's over." Nodding slowly as she looked at her friends, "I'm going to be fine. I'm fine." She continued in her most reassuring tone, "I'm fine."_

"_Really?" Gina and Emily asked with a slightest bit of reluctance in their voice. _

_Casey bit her lip and threw the covers over her, "I'M NOT FINE!" she cried out hysterically for the billionth time. And this time, it was in front of her friends._

_Emily and Gina groaned as their eyes rolled. They knew this was going to go on for a long time. _

- - - -

Emily narrowed her eyes to focus on Gina, "Look what you did. You seriously just _had_ to say it."

"Hey!" Gina defended herself, "You're the one that brought it up!"

They both stared at a sobbing-under-her-pillow Casey, "We're definitely going to watch Wicker Park!" Emily confirmed.

Gina wrinkled her nose, "I haven't seen that. Who's in it?"

"Josh Hotnett. I mean Josh Harnett." Emily grinned with happiness at the thought.

"Oh!" Gina shared that same enthusiasm. "He is totally hot. We must watch. What's it about anyway?"

Casey sat up and wiped her tears as she looked at Gina, "It's about a guy who fell in love with a girl. They were in a great relationship..." She sniffled as she continued, "until--"

"That's all we're going to tell you." Emily interrupted, "Or else it spoils the fun." Gina's face wrinkled angrily at the deprivation of story synopsis, "There's a crazy bitch though!" Emily thought she'd offer, "Those are always fun to watch, right Casey?"

"Yeah," Casey nodded slowly and wiped her face, "I love crazy bitches in movies…they help me displace my real feelings."

"Man you guys suck!" Gina huffed and sighed, "Well can you tell me about the ending?"

Emily snorted almost immediately, "Of course not. All we can say is…" Emily and Casey sighed happily. "Best. Ending. Ever."

"I'm a sucker for a good ending." Gina had her own sigh of happiness, "Pop it in!" she looked over at Casey, "You sure you wanna watch this?"

Honestly, Casey didn't. She loved the movies with the happy endings and all she could think was: she didn't get hers. She was divorced and she wasn't with Derek. In a crazy way her relationship story related to Wicker Park and all she could wish was for her to have that ending with Derek…but with the way things have been lately for her…it wasn't looking too promising.

"Way better than the ultimate love story." Casey faintly announced, "I don't think I can handle that right now." Yeah, she really couldn't. That movie made her cry just at the thought of it. She looked over at Emily and sat up straight, "I'm ready to yell at the crazy bitch."

Emily popped the DVD in and sat on the couch with the girls. Gina got comfy, "So this crazy bi--" Emily cleared her throat really loud to which Gina groaned loudly, "So this crazy beaver ..." she corrected herself, "just how crazy are we talking?"

Casey raised an eyebrow while Emily giggled next to her, "Beaver?"

Gina wrinkled her nose with slight anger, "I can't say bad words."

"Yeah, Casey, Mrs. Potty Mouth over here has a bet going on with me." Emily choked out in laughter, "I bet her she can't go one week without swearing. Today is actually the last day. She's been pretty good so far but there are times that I almost catch her saying it but she corrects herself." She nodded a proud nod to her good-word friend, "I'm actually very proud of you, Gina."

"Thanks," Gina gave herself a pat on the back, "I try."

Casey's brows furrowed in thought. There had to be a loop-hole of some sort because Gina cannot go a day without saying the words she loved so much, "How do you know she doesn't swear at home?"

Gina sighed, "Sam and Emily are in it together. Emily gets money from me and Sam gets no verbal abuse."

Casey reached over and gave Gina a hug, "You have just made my day, Gina." She turned to Emily, "And thank you for making such stupid ass bets." She sat back and sighed happily, "I never knew bullshit bets like this could make me happy inside." Gina rolled her eyes again as Emily giggled, "Okay, time for some Josh Hotnett greatness."

"So no more crying right, Casey?" Gina was hoping so. Crying Casey was over exerted for the past month. And the truth was Gina felt like smacking her friend every time she cried. It was getting really annoying and it made her want to say those forbidden words even more…but Gina was a good friend. Swearing and smacking were not what good friends do. They comforted their friends and listened to their problems. Swearing and Smacking was left for imaginary scenarios.

"No more. Thanks to you two." They all smiled happily and got into their movie.

--

"Coldplay!" Emily squeaked. "This is the best part!"

"Oh my fu—blergin' God! The Scientist!" Gina saved herself some money right there. "Find her Matt! I'm so glad that little lint licker told Lisa and Matt the truth!"

"Right there!! Matt! There!!" Emily screamed at the TV as if it were her first time watching.

Gina started to sniffle as did Emily. "This _is_ the best ending ever! Oh my God. Coldplay. Why the Monkeynuts do you do this to me!"

Emily sighed happily as she wiped her tears, "See. Perfection." The credits rolled as Coldplay still faded through the scene. "I forget how much I love this movie."

"It's definitely one of my new favorites!" Gina proclaimed. "Josh Hotnett plus a crazy cooter plus romance _and_ Coldplay! Greatness."

Both girls looked toward the middle of the couch to check up on the quiet Casey. She just sat there silent as her face was just as drenched as theirs. Emily rubbed her back to comfort her, "Casey, you okay?"

"I'm fine." Gina and Emily immediately groaned at those two very repetitive words being spoken out of their opposite-than-fine friend. Immediately Gina had the swearing and smacking scenarios run through her mind again. "I'm fine. It's just the ending is happy. You guys cried. I cried too. It was natural." Her face wrinkled again and her eyes started to well up, "The airport…" she choked out tiny whimpers, "He came to find and stop her..."

"Shit." Emily muttered and immediately she just realized the parallel.

"Feces is right, Em." Gina tried to comfort Casey too as she cried. She fetched a look over at Emily; a glare, "Look what you did again, Dumba—arse. First The Notebook…now Wicker Park. You just _had_ to let it hit close to home."

"Hey! I totally forgot about Casey and the ending!" she defended herself, "Casey, I'm sorry."

Casey wiped her face on her sleeve, "It's okay, Em. I almost forgot I was leaving too."

- - - -

_Casey picked herself up again. Finally opening those blinds in her room and fighting her battle with the happy sunlight. It was time to prove to herself that she was fine; that she was really going to be okay with everything. So far she's been just that; okay. The girls kept calling to check up on her and she assured them that she was doing well and that her eating had been back to normal. It had been but there were those occasional nights where she gave in and indulged in cookie dough ice cream deliciousness. _

_Sitting quietly at her kitchen table with a spoonful of the delectable goodness, she finally was able to sort through her pile of mail. Bills, bills, and more bills. "Dammit." She shook her head, running a nervous hand through her hair, "So many damned bills!" She sighed and felt like crying at how difficult her life was becoming now. It wasn't happy go lucky anymore because she was becoming an adult that had to face the real world. Her divorce cost a significant amount of money and right now she just had to thank Lindsay for being the roommate that paid on time or else she'd be in a bind right now. "I really need to find a new job." She sorted through her mail again, putting the bills aside from the stupid advertising papers that always annoyingly made their way into their pile. "Breast augmentations for cheap?" she read aloud and snorted sadly, "Pathetic. Is this what they try to sell in Toronto these days?" she let out a laugh and made it to a letter addressed from her father. The same envelope she was supposed to open on that difficult day. Opening up the letter slowly, she read over her Father's kind offer. "New York, huh?" she shrugged and thought about it._

_She realized that she spent the last months dealing with this whole marriage and relationship with Derek and now she really needed to figure out what she was planning to do with her real life. She was a big kid now with her college graduate and degree. Taking off a semester to relax, Casey knew she had to get back to school for that next degree in her field. She would be back to being the old Casey who was stuck in school to think about her future._

_For the past months, Casey was lost in this world of romance and feelings and there was no acknowledging her future. What she was going to do about her future because all she saw when it came to the future was Derek Venturi. But that was over now. It was over now. And she really just needed to get past it. She needed to think about a future without him and think about this opportunity. She didn't waste these last few years of college to quit now. Her future was back to flood her mind and this was big. New York was big. _

_Derek said those words to her. Yeah, he definitely said them because they sang annoyingly in her head. "Learn to live Casey. Please." She groaned aloud and realized he was really right. She really did need to live her life and stop being so scared. New York was learning to live. New York was something new; something scary. Yeah. It would be a big change in leaving Toronto but what better way to do it? She needed to head back into school for a few more years and she would be getting a job. Plus she was divorced and it was time for that change; time to move on...if that was possible yet._

_She would be learning to live just like Derek asked of her. Sure she'd miss her family and her friends but she really needed to get away and this was her opening. This was her opportunity to get that change. "New York…" she said aloud to herself and boy did she like the sound of it. America was going to be that something new for her and it was one that she was kind of excited about. "…yeah." _

_She got up and grabbed her cell phone and called her Father, "Dad?"_

_--_

_There Casey sat at their local lunch place that she and the girls would have their usual meetings and girl talk. It was the first time in what seemed like forever that she'd been out of her apartment. And boy did it feel good to be outside again. The sunlight was starting to fly to her side and it was after her decision to change her life that things shined more bright. It was like a clear cut sign that she was doing right by her choice. _

_She had spoken to her Father and told him of her wanting to leave Toronto. It was an impulse decision and those were much too rare for her. After those 15 minutes she thought, she knew it was something she was sure she wanted to do. He was thrilled about it and he was ecstatic that finally he'd be able to see her more. After a long talk with Nora and George, they were nothing but happy for her. Well they were sad but had to see it her way. They accepted it just like they accepted everything in her life. She was really learning to become an adult and they knew she was really determined to become something in the future. She was learning to get past the drama that happened and it was time to focus on her._

_As she sat here waiting for her two girlfriends, she knew it was time to break it to them. She wasn't sure how they would react but at this point she needed to tell them. _

_Gina took a hurried seat, "I'm sorry, Casey." She panted, "Sam was harassing me."_

_Casey's nose wrinkled, "Gross." She looked around, "Where's Em?"_

_Gina rolled her eyes, "She said she's running a bit late too but when I talked to her it sounded like she wasn't alone."_

"_That little nasty…" Casey and Gina laughed hysterically. It was probably the first time in the past two weeks that she felt like her old self again. Laughing and joking with her girlfriend was just a step in becoming the old Casey McDonald again…and she was really looking forward to being that. "I wonder who the guy is…"_

"_I wonder too. She seriously won't tell me." Gina got quiet and immediately her face grew bright as if she solved the problem, "I bet she's having an affair with a married man!"_

"_Gina," Casey was expressionless, "Stop watching those Lifetime movies."_

"_Hey!" Gina immediately defended herself, "It's the only channel with decent things to watch!"_

_Casey knew she shouldn't do it but there was a part of her that really wanted to know. Sure she wanted move on from him but she had the right to ask. She really _wanted_ to ask, "So," she tried her hardest to be nonchalant, "how's Derek doing?"_

_Gina shrugged, "He's doing okay, Casey. I've seen him on better days." Casey nodded slowly. "He knew I was coming out to see you and he told me to tell you 'hey'."_

_Casey smiled at that little fact that he still made the effort to say hello. "Tell him I said hey too."_

"_Will do." Gina sighed, "But, you know, one day I'm gonna start charging for this back and forth messenger tal--"_

"_Sorry!" Emily ran in and took her seat, "Sorry I'm late." Casey and Gina smirked at their late friend. "Wh-what?" Oh how it felt good to tease this time. Yeah, it felt really good. "What the hell is the matter with you two?"_

"_So…" Gina grinned. _

_Casey joined in, "Who's the guy?" Emily rolled her eyes at how a few months turned the tables on her, "Is it someone we know?"_

_Emily shrugged, "Not saying. At least not yet, okay?" Both girls rolled their eyes, "I promise I'll tell you guys. I just have to make sure that it works out this time…"_

_Casey raised an immediate eyebrow. "This time?! That means you've been with him before! Who is it Em?! Do I know him? Gina probably doesn't…"_

"_Hey!" she was offended by her lack of knowledge since she was the newest to the group, "That's not fair."Casey offered her a teasing smile. _

"_Casey, Gina, I'll let you know when I'm ready." Emily assured them tiredly._

"_Fine." "Blah." Casey and Gina muttered._

_--_

_After they ordered their lunches and settled down a bit, Casey found now was the time to tell them. "So guys," Casey took a sip of water to clear the food from her mouth, "I spoke to my Dad a few days ago."_

"_Oh, that's great. How is he?" Emily asked while Gina stuffed her face some more. _

_Casey sat up straight and wiped her mouth with her napkin. A bright smiled graced her lips as the words began to pour out, "I'm moving to New York!" she beamed at them excitedly._

_Emily froze as her face fell and Gina spit out her mouth full of food. "WHAT?!"_

_Casey disgustingly wiped the masticated burger and fries that was freshly sported on her shirt and hair. "Um, ew."_

"_You're leaving, Casey?" Emily asked seriously. _

_She slowly nodded, still attempting to get the nastiness off of her, "Yeah." She brought her attention to them, "My Dad sent me a letter telling me how proud he was of me and all that good stuff. He also told me that his friend had a job opening as a Therapists Assistant and with my current degree I could go and get that job." Emily and Gina slowly nodded, "And what's even better is that he pulled some strings to get me into NYU. I'm going to start next month for Spring Semester so I could begin to get my Master's Degree. Then I could actually become that shitty Psychologist!" Casey was entirely too excited and her friends were not. "I mean come on guys! This is what I've been working towards for four years now. And NYU! They are great in these programs for Psychology."_

"_Oh." "I see." _

_Casey sighed and could already see how bummed they've become. "You guys, I really need this and I need you two to support my decision to leave. This is a huge opportunity to help my future and my future career. I'm happy about this and I need you guys to be happy for me too."_

"_We're happy about this opportunity, Casey," Emily needed to reassure her, "but you're leaving. You're leaving us."_

_Gina frowned and tried to hold back her overwrought tears as she looked at Emily. "No more Casey?" Emily shook her head sadly, "No more lunches with Casey? No more teasing Casey?" she sniffled and looked at her soon to be gone friend, "Why are you leaving us?"_

_Casey had a half smile for her friend, bringing her hand to squeeze Gina's, "Gina, I'm going back to school. That's all this is. I'll come back to visit. I have to see my family and you guys. I'm not gone forever. Just look at it as a temporary absence." _

"_God, Casey," Emily said a bit rude, "You're totally breaking the group up."_

_Casey had the reflex to snort to that comment, "It was already breaking, Em. It broke when Derek and I got together."_

"_Case--"_

"_I really shouldn't have brought that up." Casey sighed and needed to change the subject, "So are you guys going to be okay with this?"_

_Emily nodded with a half smile, "Of course, Casey. I know how important this was ever since high school. I'm happy for you." _

_Casey offered her friend a thanks then looked over at Gina, who was quiet due to the breaking news of her friend's future departure. Emily nudged her shoulder and Gina picked her head up and muttered blankly, "I'm happy for you leaving, Casey." _

"_Gina, don't be sad right now," Casey let out a playful chuckle, "I'm not leaving yet. I'm leaving next month. We still got a whole month to hang out. And like I said, I'm always going to come back to visit. I'm really going to miss you guys. There's going to be no other Emily and Gina that will replace you two there, okay?" Emily and Gina nodded. Casey had a slight smirk on her own face, "I mean the group won't be completely broken…Emily mystery guy will be my replacement!"_

_Emily didn't wait to long to throw a glare at her best friend.  
_

- - - -

Gina's face fell once more at the thought of it, "Casey, are you sure you wanna leave?" she thought she could try to sway Casey's dumb decision again. "I mean New York is full of as—anusholes and here you still have us. You love us!"

"Yeah, I love you guys," Casey stifled a laugh, "Gina. But I really am leaving. New York is my future. We discussed this already." She put an arm around both Gina and Emily, pulling them closer for a hug, "I'm really going to miss you guys though. Seriously…who else makes bets like you two? Who else will watch over me during a horrible break up? No one in New York, trust me." They both gave her a hug and it was quickly interrupted by the sound of keys in the keyhole and the door knob turning. They all tensed as they pulled away; all eyes on the door.

Finally there she came through, panting as she pulled her luggage through the doorway. "Phew," she stifled a laugh, "Hey girls!" she smiled happily, "Hey, Casey. I'm back."

All eyes narrowed at the woman that let this divorce be what it was. Emily and Gina immediately felt a rush of violence run through them at the sight of this girl. How perfect and wonderfully nice she was sought out to be but in reality she was a home-wrecking slutbug.

Gina found herself getting up off that couch; eyes narrowed viciously, "You know, you are one sad little…" her nose wrinkled in thought of a replacement swear word, "little…ah-ha!" She brought her focus back at the confused Lindsay, "You are one sad little hot dog stealer!"

Lindsay was beyond confused at whatever that meant. "Ex-excuse me?" she stammered.

"I sai--"

Casey put a hand in front of Gina to stop and she did. She felt anger rush through her as her body brought itself off the couch; eyes glaring daggers onto her roommate. She had that stupid half blonde and half brown hairstyle that she always thought was cute but right now she thought it would look cuter if it was pulled on. Hard. "I got this."

Lindsay's eyes arched nervously as Casey's glares were directed toward her. "Cas-Casey? Wh-what's going on?"

Casey found her breathing to become more erratic as Lindsay pretended to act stupid. "Don't act like you don't know, Lindsay." She paced slowly toward her and her fists were clenched tight; her knuckles more white than snow. "Don't pretend, Lindsay, because I am _not_ stupid."

"Casey, seriously," confusion was written all over her voice as it grew more and more terrified. "What is going on?" Her face grew curious immediately, "Oh! I've been meaning to ask. Did you and Derek ever make up?"

"Don't you _dare _say his nam--"She stopped in her tracks and her eyebrows furrowed to that statement. "Wait. You know about me and Derek?"

Lindsay nodded slowly, "Yeah, Casey. He came over that nigh--"

"Yeah, that night when you slept with him?!" Emily snorted pathetically toward her. This stupid act was getting on her nerves as well. Casey was never one for violence and she had a big feeling that when Casey saw Lindsay, she was going to just forgive and forget…just like that.

"Sleep with him?!" Lindsay laughed out loud, "I never slept with Derek."

All eyes grew wide at that revelation.

"Holy Crucial Moment of the story, Batman!!" Gina yelped out, "I didn't see that coming!"

* * *

**So a great amount of you thought right. ;)**

**Next chapter we'll see what really happened that night. **

...but until then...I gotta study...but I'll try to get it out.


	18. Love Sick Ranting

**AN: So I'll just say...happy 4th of July...tomorrow. :)**

**Oh and sorry for the shortness that is this chapter. It was long...so I split it. **

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned. **

* * *

Casey wasn't sure if what she heard was real. She just knew her stomach started to feel funny and her heart started to tug hard. She paced backwards onto the nearest chair and traded glances between all three girls. Her face looked extremely pained and settled her focus on Emily and Gina. "Wa-wait…" she nervously let out in a high pitched voice, "Did sh-she…" she took a deep breath and took a quick glance at Lindsay then back at the girls, "Did she just say she and Derek didn't…" she couldn't breathe right, "sleep together?!" she squeaked again in that high pitch screech. Emily and Gina nodded slowly with wide eyes. Casey brought her disbelieving eyes at Lindsay, "Are you kidding me, Lindsay?! You didn't have sex with Derek?!"

"Never." Lindsay shook her head as her eyebrows arched with a slight smile, "Why would I sleep with my roommate's boyfriend?" her lips pursed in thought, "Well I guess not really boyfriend, right? You guys got married?"

Casey's breathing was still extremely erratic and this time it wasn't because she wanted to kill Lindsay, it was because she just made the biggest mistake of her life. "H-how did you know, Lindsay?" she stammered nervously.

"That night," Lindsay took her jacket off and took a seat on the arm of the couch. "all he talked about was you."

- - - -

"_Hey, Lindsay!"_

_She smiled at him, "Hey, Der--" he interrupted her greeting by kissing her then and there._

_Lindsay put her hands on his wrists and pulled them off of her. "Derek, what the hell are you doing?!" she shrieked out._

"_Boo!" Derek's nose wrinkled almost immediately, "Jusss like Casey did!" he laughed hysterically and brought himself into their apartment. "Lindsay! Lindsay! Come over and gimme a kiss." His index finger pointed repeatedly at his lips, "I know you likes me!" he sang happily._

_Lindsay had furrowed eyebrows and let out a tiny chuckle, "Sure I think you're adorable Derek but you and Casey are together. I can't do that to her. She's my friend and you're pretty damned drunk."_

"_Yeah…" he nodded in agreement, "You're right!" He scratched his head like a monkey in front of her, "But Casey said you didn't knows about us? She said we're weird!" he frowned, "She said we is weird and she wants the divorce." He dropped onto the couch while Lindsay sat on the chair in front of him to hear of these new revelations. "Casey doesn't love me like I loves her, Lindsay Lohan." He shook his head in rapid notions, "Unh-uh. She does not! We don't has a future together!" _

"_You're married?" she decided to ask him, "You two got married?"_

"_Yup!" Derek head nodded rapidly like a dog, "We did in Las Vegass!" he laughed hysterically, "I said Vegass like ass!" he settled down his laughter while he hugged Casey's couch pillow tightly, "We was drunks right?" she was a bit confused by that. Lindsay wasn't sure if he was asking or telling so she nodded lightly to help him continue, "And we had magical powers! I said 'Casey, I love you!' And then she said she did too! And we gots married, Lindsay!" he flaunted his wedding band in front of her, "See! We got married!"_

"_That's good, Derek." She felt obliged to listen to him but she had packing she still had to do, "Alright, so Casey isn't here." She stood up from her chair and kind of hoped he caught onto the sign that she wanted him to leave, "You should go find her because I really have some packing to do."_

"_Where is you goin?" he asked happily._

"_California to visit my family and hopefully get some auditions…" immediately Lindsay knew she shouldn't be wasting her breath going into detail because he was drunk and probably didn't really care. "So if you could leave, Derek…"_

_She was right because he hardly was paying attention to what she was saying. "Casey used to always kicks me outta here alls the time!" he laughed hysterically again, "I miss Casey!" his laugh quickly turned into a frown. _

_She pulled him off of the couch and tried to pull him toward the door, "Casey's probably looking for you! She probably misses you too, Derek, just like you miss her! You should go talk to her!" she expressed with excitement that she could only hope that he'd mirror. _

_Unfortunately for her, he was the opposite. He was upset and depressed apparently. "Casey doesn't miss me, Lindsay. She wants to divorce me. She wants to divorce us." He frowned and she could still see the rosy cheeks that drowned the color of his skin, "So I need to give her the divorce, Lindsay. Give me a kiss!" he demanded playfully as he pointed to his lips again._

_Lindsay tried to hold in the laugh that tried to escape because it was as if he felt she didn't know _where_ to kiss him. "No." She finally sighed with a slight bit of annoyance, "I'm not going to give you a kiss, alright? You and Casey are married and I'm not getting involved in this…"_

"_Fine!" he muttered loudly toward her._

"_Could you please leave, Derek?" she tried again and she desperately wanted him to leave, "I really have to finish packi--"_

"_I bought Casey a ring, Lindsay…" he continued on and she finally realized this guy just wasn't going to stop. She huffed over to her bedroom where she had a shitload of packing to finish up. And like a dog, Derek followed her as he continued his love-sick ranting, "She really loved the ring when she tried it on, Lindsay. She was in loves with it and I wanted to gives it to her."_

_Lindsay sat on her floor and began to fold her clothes. She quickly realized that maybe he would be good company to have around because the poor guy was drunk and heartbroken…safety first. "So you never gave her the ring, Derek?"_

"_Nope," he muttered sadly, "I wants to give it to hers, right?" once again she was confused by that statement, "But I wanteds to know if she wants to stay married to mes." He shrugged and sat back against her headboard, "But she didn't. She wants to divorce 'cause she don't knows how we'll be in the future." His face fell, "We don't has a future. She don't think we'll make it in the future!"_

"_Oh," she kinda felt bad for the guy but she could see what Casey's mindset was. She was fully aware of Casey's rational thinking and it sounded like a typical Casey decision. "Does she love you?"_

_Derek was able to beam brightly at that question, "I heard her tell Gina! She said she did! Casey said she loves me too! Yeah!" He let out a happy sigh, "I loves Casey and Casey loves me and we loves each other…"_

"_Aw," Lindsay smiled happily as she put her folded pants at the bottom of the suitcase. "That's great, Derek." _

"_Yeah," he fell over and went to lie on her bed sideways, "it's great but she doesn't loves me enough to stays married." Derek's sighed in thought, "Divorce. Doot doot. Divorce..." he sang sadly and continued, "She wants to divorce me because she don't loves me enough like I love her. She doesn't wants to stay married."_

"_Well, Derek," she started to feel like her own version Dr. Phil…minus the hair, the body, and the male genitalia, "you can't really make somebody stay married to you. No matter how much they love you or you love them, you can't force them."_

_He nodded slowly, "You're right. Yeah…" he subconsciously traced his name on her bed sheet, "Casey says to me that she wants the divorces then be in a real relationship." He smiled in thought about his Casey, "I love Casey. I loves my relationship with her."_

"_See, Derek," Lindsay folded some more clothes, "there you go. There's your answer. Casey still wants to be with you but just give her the divorce. Then you two can be together and maybe you can be really married later on."_

"_Yeah!" he got excited all over again. "You're right agains, Lindsay Lohan!" he sat up, "I can marries Casey for real! We can get really married!" he smiled happily and went back to lie on her bed, "Marrying Casey's gonna be freakin' awesome, Lindsay! Are you going to comes to the wedding?"_

_Lindsay laughed lightly at how he's already planning his future wedding. "Sure, Derek. I hope to." _

"_I love Casey, Lindsay…"_

_This just made Lindsay very happy. Here was a guy who could truly admit he was absolutely in love with his woman and these days, it was very rare. Guys have become pigs who just needed a quick fix or a temporary love. But not this guy; this guy really loved Casey and he really wanted to make it work with her. She couldn't help but think Casey was a very lucky girl. "I know you do, Derek, and Casey loves you too."_

"_Yeah she does!" he grinned happily. _

"_So you're going to make up with Casey right? No fighting between you two?" she put a stack of shirts into her suitcase. _

"_Yeah, Lindsay Lohan, I'll just give Casey her divorce. Then we can bes together for real…" his voice started to fade lightly, "Then we'll be married for real when she realizes that we'll be together forever. Our magical powers says so…" he got quieter, "Casey…"_

_She could hear him snoring lightly and she knew the poor love-sick puppy had finally gone to rest. Now she could actually get the rest of her packing done without Derek distracting her. She noticed how much the poor guy moved around in his sleep; not only that, he talked in his sleep. He kept mumbling, "Come on Case, let me check your earrings…" and Lindsay had no idea what that meant. But she had a slight feeling that it was kind of dirty. She shuddered at the thought. Then it got even weirder when the guy took his jeans off; clad in his boxers as he got comfy in her bed, putting her long pillow between his legs to snuggle softly. "Stop! No! No! Not the scissors!"_

_Lindsay shook her head, "Whatever that means…" then her nose wrinkled in disgust as he began to scratch himself , "Dammit," she muttered, "Remind self to wash the bed sheets and pillow cases when I get back."_

_Around 3am, Lindsay had finally finished and ended up falling asleep on her floor since the drunk puppy had fallen asleep on her own bed. _

_- - - -  
_

_Lindsay scratched her face lightly and groaned at her lack of rest. Grabbing her phone to check the time, Lindsay darted up and realized her flight was in exactly three hours. She was supposed to have been at the airport at this time with how strict they've become over the years. She was in immediate freak-out mode, trying her hardest to get herself ready and to gather all her belongings. She was only thankful that she got all her packing done hours ago. "Shit!" she quietly muttered to herself and she was completely scatterbrain for the half an hour or so. Grabbing her suitcase and her little bag, she darted out of her room to hurry and leave. She bumped into Casey, who she hardly saw nowadays but had no time for chitchat; she really had to leave. _

_--_

_Derek awoke with a pounding headache as he tossed in this bed that didn't belong to him. His eyes darted completely open and looked around the room. He even looked down to see his pants on the edge of the bed. "What the hell. Where the hell am I?!" he quietly freaked out to himself. He fell off the bed where a loud thud sounded the place. He wasted no time in quickly putting his jeans back on and he felt disgusted. Derek immediately scanned the entire room to look for a familiarity of some sort and he found none. He had never seen or been in this room before and man was he having a panic attack of his own. "Please…" he only hoped he didn't do anything stupid…but there was the slightest bit of doubt in him. He had a shaky feeling he did something very wrong. His eyes ran a mile a minute around this unfamiliar room, pacing backwards he hit a dresser with many of the contents fell to ignite a bigger crashing sound._

_He was frozen where he stood and he tried his hardest to recall. He remembered getting really drunk by all those shots he took and remembered he wanted to go to—the door had opened to reveal a wooden spoon-holding wife of his. And immediately he realized he was in Casey's apartment and it wasn't her room he was in. It was her roommates. Guilt washed over him in that same second. "It's just you…"_

--

"Oh my God…" Casey slouched back into her seat, burying her head in her hands. "Oh my God."

"How are we so sure about you, Lindsay?" Gina still wasn't convinced by this story, "How are we _supposed_ to believe you?"

Lindsay sighed heavily, "I would never do this to Casey. Sure I always thought Derek was cute and stuff but after I figured out that they were actually together?" she shrugged, "I couldn't do that. Casey took me in when I didn't have a place to stay." She looked over a terrified Casey, who took her head out her hands as she shook her head in shock, "Casey, please believe me. I didn't do anything with him. I literally just listened to him whine about you two and your marriage."

"So how did you figure out Derek and Casey were even together?" Emily asked for her own benefit. "She never told you?"

"Casey's never home," she continued as her attention was brought to Emily, "And when she _is_ home, she's about to leave and she always tells me she's going to hang out with Derek. And she always said it with that 'in love' smile when you found someone you just can't wait to see. Derek's name always did that to her and I wasn't stupid. I thought it was weird at first with the two of them being step-siblings but if Casey's happy with him then who am I to take it away from her."

Emily nodded and that was a very solid answer. Lindsay was becoming _very_ hard to hate right now. Even Gina couldn't hate her. She actually felt like giving Lindsay a huge hug because she did nothing wrong; only encouraged their relationship. Gina couldn't resist. She got up and slowly paced over to a slightly terrified Lindsay, who didn't know whether she was going to be hit or violated. Gina brought her in for a tight hug and patted her back, "Aw, Lindsay. You're not that crazy bi—cooch that slept with our girlfriend's husband."

Gina pulled back and sat back on the couch to a somewhat weirded out Lindsay. "Thanks?" Gina waved a hand.

"So I made a huge mistake?" Casey still couldn't get her breathing under control, "I divorced Derek for no reason at all?!" she looked around at the three girls who had a bit of reluctant-answer-faces on. "Paper bag!" no one got up, "I NEED A PAPER BAG NOW!" she screamed and Lindsay ran into the kitchen to grab a brown paper bag. Immediately handing it to her freaking-out roommate, she watched as Casey hyperventilated into the bag. After a few minutes of controlling her breathing, Casey looked at all of them. "What should I do now? I ruined the best relationship I've had all because of something that wasn't true!" She ran both nervous hands through her long dark brown hair, "Derek never cheated on me. He never did anything to ruin this…it was all me for believing it!" she shook her head pathetically at herself, "I knew there was a reason I really didn't want to sign those papers!"

"You got the divorce already?" Lindsay choked out. Casey nodded sadly. "Poor, Derek…"

Emily groaned aloud causing the three girls to focus their attention on her. She looked up from her cell phone, "Casey, I really, _really,_ have to go but I don't have to if you need me."

Casey offered her a friend a kind smile, "Go ahead Em. I know he's important." Her face started to fall, "Don't go and make any stupid mistakes like…" she choked out sadly, "like…I DID!" she cried out hysterically. Emily and Gina groaned while Casey immediately settled herself, "Emily, please just go. Don't stay here. Be with your secret boyfriend."

Emily sighed not sure what to do. "Casey, I want to sta--"

"No." Casey demanded, "Go, Emily. I have Gina--" Lindsay coughed lightly, "and Lindsay here with me." Emily nodded and said her quick goodbyes before she left. Casey stared at the two girls left on the couch and she needed advice, "What should I do? Could you guys please tell me what I should do?"

Gina sat and thought, "What is that you_ want_ to do? Do you want to go see Derek and tell him?"

"I do." Casey shrugged and there went those fluttering thoughts again. She started to over-think every single scenario that could possibly happen if she went to go see him. If he would still care to speak to her after the reason for the divorce was a farce. Or if he would just throw it in her face that she was wrong yet again and this was all her fault. She was scared again and this was so typical of her but she couldn't help but think it. She was really that predictable. "I don't want to though."

Gina took a deep breath and she pretty much just thought the whole swearing vocabulary. "Cas--" her face wrinkled as she gagged, "God, what the hell did I eat?" she felt something coming up that shouldn't be, "Oh, flubberduckies!!" she ran to Casey's bathroom.

"Ew." Casey muttered disgustingly towards her friend and brought her attention to her roommate. "Lindsay, you spoke to him that night. Any suggestions?"

"Hmm…" Lindsay sat closer to the edge of the couch to offer her friend some much needed advice. "Well he was really heartbroken, Casey, but he really, _really,_ wanted to make it work with you. He was ready to just wait and give you the divorce and work on being in a real relationship with you. Or how Derek said it. 'Bes together for real'" Lindsay chuckled lightly at the thought while Casey's heart wrenched at those words because it was all bad timing for them. That whole day was just horrible timing and she felt like the biggest bitch in the world now, "Well, did you guys end it badly?"

Fortunately she could answer this with a slight smile, "Not at all. We even managed a few jokes when I last saw him." Casey ached at this feeling in her, "God I'm so stupid. How could I be so stupid?!" she cursed herself.

"Casey," Lindsay started, "if you guys were okay with each other, it only means he still cares. Just go talk to him. What bad would it do to just talk to him?" Lindsay could see that she was slowly convincing this over-thinking friend of hers, "You don't want the burning questions haunting you forever."

Casey nodded rapidly in agreement. "You're right." Casey knew she had to speak to him and just see where he stands. She wasn't sure what she would exactly say to him but he needed to know he didn't screw this up and that it was all her fault. Everything that happened was her fault and that she didn't blame him for anything anymore. And she could only hope he was willing to listen and maybe see what could be. Even if there was something left to work on. Casey didn't know how he would react to this news; if it would be negative or positive; if he would be angry at her or if he was just happy about it, she needed to find out. She needed to see him. She had to know what he thought about this; about them. "I have to go." She gave Lindsay a quick hug, "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for not being a backstabbing bitch."

"I only play those in roles." They both chuckled lightly and Casey darted out the door.

Lindsay heard a flushing of the toilet and out came Gina groaning loudly at her spur-of-the-moment sickness. "Blerg! I feel like tartar sauce. I haven't vomited since a lifetime of bleebles ago. Seri--" Gina's eyes wandered and realized Casey was missing and this just left Lindsay. "Where's Casey?" she made her way to sit on the couch.

"She went to go speak to Derek." Lindsay informed her.

Gina beamed, "Aw, great." Then the beam was gone immediately due to sudden burst of that awkward silence that ensued between the old roommate and the replacement roommate. Gina stared down at her fingernails for the second time that night while Lindsay looked around at the boxes that flooded the place.

"So…" Lindsay started.

Gina stared blankly ahead, "So…"

Awkward.


	19. An Emotional Eater

**AN: I hope everyone had a good fourth of July. Fireworks are always pretty. **

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned. **

* * *

She slowly paced back and forth in front of his apartment door. The revelation of a mistake that was not a mistake to begin with had started to drive her nuts. She had made the biggest mistake in her life and now she wasn't with him anymore. Standing here now, she had no idea what she wanted to say to him. Take me back? I made a mistake! She could only hope it was that easy. Derek could have moved on already, although Gina would have warned her if so. Or Derek could tell her she was wasting her time because all this was her fault to begin with. Casey really knew she shouldn't start her rational thinking in front of his door because it could lead her to running away. But she just couldn't. She came here for a reason and she needed to tell Derek what really happened. Casey owed that to him.

Bringing her shaky hand up slowly, Casey knocked. And knocked till the knob turned slightly and her heart started to race. She hadn't seen him since they signed their divorce papers and things were okay between them. So why was she nervous and expecting the worst? Maybe because deep down she felt guilty for everything that's happened and she had every right to feel that way. All these things that she blamed Derek for were blown up in her face. She could just hope Derek was still willing to give her a chance or something. Or just even the sit down and talk would be lovely right now.

"Hey, Casey?" Sam furrowed a brow, "I thought Gina was with you?"

"She's still at my apartment. I needed to speak to Derek," she told her with much urgency in her voice, "It's really, really, imperative that I talk to him."

"Oh..." Sam threw the apologetic face on, "He went out."

"Out where??" she had a bit of panic race through her voice.

"Casey," Sam sighed, "He's been pretty bummed still about what happened with you two and then with you leaving," he shrugged, "he just felt the need to go out and finally move on with his life like you did."

Her face fell dramatically, "Oh."

"If it helps, Casey," he offered, "this is his first time leaving the apartment in a while. He's been just as crappy as you've been."

"I see," she nodded slowly and offered Sam a slight smile, "Thanks, Sam."

"No problem."

Casey made her way out of their door and quickly got into the elevator to leave. She felt horrible; really she did. All she could think was she's too late. He went out and is currently trying to move on from her. He'd probably pick up some bimbo and then he'd marry her and then they'd have kids together and she'd be alone. She'd be alone because she made a mistake and her timing was off.

Her nose became red as the sniffles began to flood her. She was just getting frustrated with how long this stupid elevator was taking to get her out of this dumb building. She still just couldn't believe the timing of everything; the timing of decisions and the consequences that had come from them. The timing of the fight and the timing of her change in decision. The timing of that morning and she knew if Lindsay wasn't in such a rush, that things could have been solved differently. Then the timing of the revelation that Derek did _nothing_ wrong and he wasn't even home. He was moving on and now she would be moving soon. After everything that just played out, she almost forgot she was moving. The thought of working something out with Derek plagued her mind and moving to New York was the last thing she could think about. But like she told him before, things happened for a reason and now she could only hope it'd be a positive; in one way or another.

Finally it hit ground floor and the doors opened to a depressed Derek. "Derek?" Talk about timing.

He looked up and saw Casey standing there. For some odd reason he wasn't sure if she was really there or if she was one of those hallucinations he kept having. "Casey?" she nodded, making her way out of the elevator door to stand face to face with him. A smile graced his lips since what felt like forever. "Hey."

- - - -

_For the past month, he was crazy without her. He would bury himself in his sheets and come out from hiding to eat all the junk food he'd see. It was unhealthy but he could care less. His life without Casey was unhealthy and that's what was more important. He'd lost Casey because he was stupid. He wasn't himself without her. He was a mess and he was boring. It was as if he was non-existent; a ghost that lingered around on a good day. He didn't have many good days. Derek was experiencing his first mourning period.  
_

_He'd attempt to go out and try to move on but every time he'd drive around, he'd see something that reminded him of Casey or something that Casey would've liked or someone Casey mentioned. She was more than in his head and he'd never get anywhere. He'd head right back home and bury himself in his sheets again. Sam tried to give him some support but Derek just wasn't up for talking. Even Gina had forgiven him and attempted to talk but he just didn't really care for anyone else at the moment; just Casey. He was going to punish himself for wrecking it with her. Derek believed he shouldn't be able to laugh and have fun because he didn't have her. Any smile or any grin he felt coming up on his features would immediately be forced back within him. Yeah, he was going through a tough time._

_Days had passed and he hated what he was doing to himself. This wasn't him and he needed to bounce back. He tried his hardest to pick himself up and he did a pretty good job. Well he forced himself to do a pretty good job at it. He woke up at a reasonable hour and got out of bed instead of lying around all day. He shared some laughs with his roommates again and things were becoming much brighter. Though, the junk food binge was still too much of a habit and that wouldn't change anytime soon._

_Just as things started to become just a little more back to normal came the news of Casey's future departure._

"_What the hell is wrong with her?" Derek raised an eyebrow at the sobbing Gina as he made his way over to his recliner to get comfy. "Woman times again, Gina?" he snorted and grabbed the remote, quickly flipping through the channels for something decent to watch instead the occasional Lifetime Movie Network._

"_Derek," Sam said reluctantly and didn't know how to break it to his friend, "Casey's--"_

"_Casey's what?" Derek immediately brought his attention over to the two on the couch, "Casey's what?" he demanded a response and he became a bit worried. Seeing Gina sobbing and the fact that he knew she went out to lunch with Casey, made him a bit scared, "Hello?!"_

_Gina sniffled slightly and looked at Derek, "She's moving to New York next month."_

"_Uh-huh…" he breathed out as he slouched back in his recliner. There was that sort of aching feeling in him where he felt like something or someone just kicked him hard in the stomach. Kind of like that morning when Casey saw him at her apartment. It hurt. "Moving…"_

"_Yeah," Gina leaned her head on Sam's shoulder, "she's going back to school and her Dad even hooked her up with a badass job. If I weren't so sad, I'd be jealous."_

_Despite his newfound sadness about it, he was proud of her. This was the Casey he knew and he quickly realized she was moving on. She was actually moving on from him. Not moping around her apartment like he was because she was going to make something of her life and move on from what those 7 months were. As much as he wanted to tell himself to do the same, he just couldn't. Not yet at least._

_For Derek, getting over girls was easy. It could be a good month or even a few good short weeks then it'd be over and he'd be onto searching for the next girl. He was that way since he could walk and it didn't change for anyone. And that was his life up until 7 months ago. That very, very, accidental marriage happened and he found someone that made him crazy…but the good crazy. She was the one that changed him. Now she would be leaving him. "Moving, huh?" he didn't wait for a response. Instead he got up grabbed an unopened bag of salt n' vinegar chips and headed to his room, getting into those familiar sheets again where he felt like death._

_Casey would be moving to another country and he knew if things hadn't been screwed up between them that she wouldn't even consider leaving. But unfortunately for him, she would be. She'd be leaving her family here, her friends, and him. It's like things were just changing left and right around him and it sucked. It sucked terribly. Just months ago, he was happy in annoying his step-sister slash wife. He was growing feelings within himself and quickly he cursed himself for doing so. He cursed himself for starting anything with her because it caused this. But as he quickly cursed himself, he'd quickly take it back because he knew what they had in those two months together were perfect. They were special and he wouldn't give that up for anything. He wouldn't ever forget it. She'd be gone and they'd be over...for good._

- - - -

She brought that same smile to creep up on her own lips, "Hi."

His eyebrows furrowed, "Wh-what are you doing here?" he stammered like an idiot in front of her.

"I really needed to talk to you."

"Sure. What about?" he looked up at the elevator then back at her as she opened her mouth to speak, "Hold that thought. You wanna just come up...again?" he managed a slight chuckle.

"Yeah," she nodded with a slight hint of desperation, "please."

--

There they sat in his room; on his bed, to have the privacy that they needed to speak. For Derek, this was probably the best day he's had in the last month because Casey was in front of him. And he hoped that this talk would be a good one. Hopefully some good news because there were too many crappy things going on recently and he didn't want to hear anymore; especially from her. "So what'd you need to talk about?" he had the slightest bit of reluctance running through his voice.

She wasn't going to dance around the subject. Timing was everything and she just needed to get it out there. "How I made the biggest mistake of my life..." she sighed in admittance as her focus was brought to the ground. His heart started to beat faster as she spoke. "I just found out today that I have made the biggest mistake of my life, Derek. And I'm here…" she shrugged, "I don't know. I felt like I needed to talk to you because I needed to tell you…"

"Tell me…" he needed her to continue and he was hoping it was something he was thinking about since the day he signed those papers. He begged that it was some sort of a chance for them again. The tone of her voice was one that was much too inviting.

Casey took a deep breath and she was ready to let him know. Looking into his eyes and boy how she got lost in those eyes. "You and Lindsay…you never…" she shuddered at the thought of what it could've been, "you never slept with her. You never cheated on me that night and there was no reason for our divorce…" she ran a nervous hand through her hair, "And now I feel horrible, Derek. I feel like the last month of my life could've been spent with you because you did nothing to hurt me! Well…" she wrinkled her nose in thought, "except for the whole secret thing. But that's not important right now." She went back to her explaining tone of voice, "What I thought you did was a lie! What I've been blaming you for, was _my_ fault to begin with. Everything that happened in this marriage…" she offered him a small smile, "well most of the _bad_ things that happened in this marriage…they were my fault. It was all my fault, Derek, and now I…I…" she started to stammer at the thoughts running in her head and now she was beginning to lose sight of what she was trying to say.

For Derek, all of those words meant the world and right now he was glad she was really saying them. That she finally realized. He shared that same small smile and brought his hand up to cup the side of her face gently. The feeling of touching her face again since what seemed like a lifetime ago, was amazing. He'd been waiting to do this and now as the shivers ran through him, he felt like things were about to take a turn for the better, "Now you what, Case?" he breathed out.

She slowly leaned her head against his hand and it felt good to touch him again. Gently grasping his wrist, she held onto him and it felt amazing to be this close again. She'd missed this and she couldn't ask for anything more right now. "I'm leaving…" he took his hand back abruptly to which she saw the hurt flicker on his features, "I'm leaving, Derek, and I needed to just figure us out. I really just needed to figure out what _we_ are."

The hurt quickly dissolved into that small smile again. "You want to figure out what we are?" she nodded and he brought his hand to hers, intertwining their fingers, "If I said I still want there to be us…i-is that okay?" she nodded again and his smile was slowly turning into that grin she missed so much. "I do still want there to be us, Casey. For the past month, I've been waiting forever. Then when Gina told me you were leaving--"

"You thought there was a zero chance for us ever getting back together?" she murmured in front of him. He slowly nodded and now she decided to bring her hands up to cup his face this time, "Derek," she got lost in his eyes once more and the words she was looking for weren't lost anymore and it was clear what she wanted to tell him, "No matter where I am…" she shrugged slightly her shoulders, "there's _always_ going to be a chance…" there was a slight bit of scared on her face, "if you'll still have me." He smiled sincerely and it gave her the assurance that he did still want her. "I'll be in New York but if you still want us then I want us too--"

"I do." He quickly told her and he really meant it. This was Casey who meant the world to him. "I still want us, Case."

"Me too…" she chuckled lightly as her fingers slowly grazed the strands of his much shorter hair, "I've really, _really,_ missed you, Derek."

"I've missed you too," he sighed heavily with that tiny small still intact, "I've missed you like crazy. You're all I think about still and I jus--" he was cut off by Casey's lips forcefully crashing onto his in a kiss that was in desperate need of one another. He edged closer to her, putting his arms to wrap gently around her waist; those soft lips meeting his again, sent his body through a crazy range of feelings and he had missed this so badly. He missed Casey and now he had her in front of him, doing this and he had to remind himself that this was really happening. Pulling apart for air, he pulled her in for much needed embrace and he really knew this was happening. "Man," he placed a small kiss on the side of her neck, "you don't know how badly I've missed you."

"If it involved locking yourself in a dark room," she pulled back with a playful smile on her face as she continued, "wrapped up in your blanket without eating… then maybe I'd know."

Derek let out a much needed laugh, "Mine was the opposite. I ate everything…"

"Oh, that's right," she teased him, "you always overeat when you're nervous or upset. I always thought that was adorable."

"Adorable?" he raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Yes, because you're an emotional eater," she stated matter-of-factly with a slight chuckle.

"Yeah, well you leaving me made me a bit emotional," he battled back playfully.

"Aww..." she pinched his cheeks playfully to which he groaned, "I made you emotional?"

He jokingly pouted like a baby as he nodded, "Yes, you are to blame." Derek settled his laughter slightly as his hands gently ran through her hair. Taking a good look at her, he knew she was someone he really needed in his life and for that he wasn't going to screw up anything at all. He was going to really try hard this time to make it work and he knew she really wanted them to work too. Even if she was leaving him—well he didn't really want to think about that. "So are we, okay? Are we Derek and Casey again?"

She brought her face closer to his and spoke softly, "You tell me…" she had a small grin forming.

His smirk was back from the dead, "It looks like we are then..." he confirmed.

"Good." He pulled her in for another kiss that became a lot more of those familiar kisses they shared when they were together. It was indescribable…it was just perfect. And Casey just couldn't believe how simple it was to just come over here and do this. Those stupid over-thinking thoughts were just a waste of anxiety because he still wanted her just as badly as she wanted him. And she _wanted_ him.

He lay back on his bed and the next thing either of them could register was Casey lightly straddling him, continuing a kiss that they both had a hunger for. The kiss had became much too heated in the matter of seconds as he slowly ran his hands up and down her sides; Casey's hands running roughing through his hair.

But as all kisses go, no matter how hot they were, came the much needed air to breathe. Derek pulled back and breathed out with a tiny laugh, "If this was how easy it was going to be, then I would've told you long time ago…" he planted a tiny kiss on the inside of her wrist.

She rose up slightly; hands on either side of him as her eyebrows furrowed, "Told me what long time ago?" she asked with that same small chuckle.

Derek smiled at her, gently stroking her hair as he continued his playful nature, "About Lindsay."

"What abou--" her laugh dissolved slowly as the realization hit her about what he knew. "Wait," she rose up completely and brought herself off of him to which he frowned. Casey sat on her knees as she looked down at him; a slightly disappointed facial expression sported on her face, "Please…" she closed her eyes and groaned lightly, "_Please_ tell me that you aren't going to say you knew about what you did with Lindsay…please…"

He sat up and brought his attention on her and she was extremely hard to read at the moment. Derek tried to reach over and put a hand on her shoulder but she dodged it quickly. His face fell almost immediately and he was confused at the total 180 she just pulled. "Casey…" she wasted no time in getting up and off his bed to stand farther from him, "What did I do?" he asked her sadly.

"What did you _do_?" she said bitterly toward him, mocking his stupid question, "You did it _again_," she put much emphasis on the last word, "You knew this whole time about what really happened that night and you decided _not_ to tell me? So you let me believe that you hurt me this whole entire time?! When you knew for a fact that you did no such thing? You knew that there was no reason to get the divorce?!" she literally screamed at him.

He stood up to stand in front of her, shaking his head, "Casey, don't do this. We were just fine, we were about to be a--"

"Don't change the subject, you jackass!" she retorted sourly, "You keep doing this to me! You keep doing it!" yelping angrily at him, "You kept this very big detail from me. This was bigger than our marriage because it is what ended it! It didn't have to end!"

Derek was growing very annoyed as she spoke every word, "Don't go and pretend like you cared about ending our marriage, okay? You wanted it and you needed it so badly. You came here begging me to sign them and it was days after that that I remember what clearly happened with her. What was I supposed to do, huh, Case? Come crawl to your door like a pathetic jackass and tell you that I didn't sleep with her? That I literally just spoke to her the whole time and fell asleep on her bed?"

"Yeah!" she angrily told him as she smacked his shoulder, "It would've been that easy."

He snorted bitterly at her as he got closer to her, "Yeah, right…" he muttered, "I bet if I told you those same exact details, you wouldn't have believed me for a second. You know why?" he didn't even wait for an answer, "Because you wanted this divorce and you couldn't care _less_ about what I was going to say to change your mind otherwise. Plus we already signed them and you got what you wanted. Then I find out you're leaving," he shrugged with smug written all over him, "there really was no point at_ all_ to tell you. So I didn't."

She shook her head at his words; his stupid pathetic excuse to make her the blame for their problems. She was growing tired of the same things he kept pulling, "That is the stupidest piece of bullshit I have _ever_ heard." It was her turn to snort bitterly at him, "You keep assuming that I wanted this so damn bad, Derek. Sure I wanted it at first because my rational and reasonable mind got the best of me. But I told you I changed my mind that night and I told you I wanted to stay married to you." He laughed to himself and it only made her angrier, "I did! _I_ wouldn't have even been here to want to start something with you if I didn't feel anything about what happened between us." His laughter subsided as her words became more and more distinguished with disgruntlement, "The first thing I thought about when _Lindsay_ told me what happened was 'I made the biggest mistake of my life.' I even told you that. If I wanted that stupid divorce just as badly as you keep claiming I did, then I wouldn't even be here right now! And I'm leaving?" she let out a sad laugh toward him, "I'm leaving so you didn't want to tell me? So what if I'm leaving? We could've still worked something out!"

"Then can we just forget this? Can we work on us?" he exasperated quietly toward her, "Casey, please."

Casey shook her head and spoke softly with sadness in her voice, "I made a mistake in believing you cheated on me, Derek, but the fact that you keep hiding these things from me." She sighed and the anger started to seep through again, "It's like I can't trust you! And then with me leaving next week…I can't trust you being here." She looked down and thought, still shaking her head bitterly toward him. Bringing her attention back to his pain-filled face, "I can't trust you. I really can't. I don't even know _what_ I was thinking coming here."

"So what?" he muttered sourly, "This is it again? There's no chance because of something I felt I didn't _need_ to tell you? You ended up finding out anyway. So you're really going to end any chance with us because you're being _you_ again?"

Her eyes grew narrow at his words, "What the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?"

"You…" he snorted loudly to make her anger, "You, Casey McDonald. You have this chance to give us what we both want so badly. I know you wanted it and I sure as hell wanted it. I'm not going to deny that for the past month I've been going a bit crazy without you. But here you are. You hold our relationship in your itty bitty hands and it really didn't take you long to look for something that would end us this time. You're _always_ going to look for something. Whether it be one tiny mistake or one big one, you'll always wait for me to ruin it and then you'll end it just like that." He snapped his fingers to prove the action. "As much as you want to blame these things on me, Casey," he shook his head bitterly toward her, "you're the only one waiting to end our relationship. Not me." He stood even closer to her, getting closer to her face to mutter, "You never wanted us, Casey. From the beginning, it was all me. You didn't want shit."

The next thing Casey could even register was her hand meeting the side of Derek's face; forcefully. It wasn't playful this time around. She watched as Derek rubbed his cheek angrily while her body shook with that same anger within her. His accusations were one that made her see red because they were far from the truth. And for him to believe all those things about her just made her pissed off even more than she already was.

"I can't _believe_ I even _thought_ about starting something with you again!" she acted out in that same bickering voice they were so used to.

"_I_ can't believe I almost took you back after all the things you did to _me_!" He muttered through his teeth as he rubbed his cheek more.

"Great!" she through her hands up in frustration, "Turn it around on me like you always do! I'm _not_ the only one in this relationship, Derek."

He snorted a loud pathetic snort toward her, "Yeah, because apparently I was the only one who was really in it."

"You're so…agh—Infuriating!!"

"Well," he wrinkled his nose in thought for a comeback. "…you're so difficult!"

"UGH!" she screamed in frustration some more, "You…" she bit her lip to figure out what she wanted to say as well, "BLERG OFF!" she darted past him and out of his bedroom door.

Derek followed closely behind her; his own eyes glaring, "I know exactly what that means!"

She rolled her eyes and stormed out of his door and quickly got into his elevator to leave. "Stupid son of bitch! I _was_ in this relationship! I _did_ want it! What the _hell_ is he talking about?! Stupid secret-keeping jacka--" she quickly quieted down as her eyes looked over at the scared teen shaking with fright in the corner of the elevator.

--

"Trust _me_?!" he yelled aloud as he paced in his kitchen, "Of course she can trust me! I didn't even cheat on her, dammit!" he slammed the junk food cabinets in anger as he thought, "FECES!" he yelled extremely loud, "We were so damn close--"

Sam came out of the room, a bit frightened himself, "Gina?"

Derek's eyes narrowed, "Does it _look_ like Gina's here?!"

Sam was so used to hearing the replacement swear words that it was an honest mistake. "I thought I heard her…" Derek slammed another cabinet. "What the hell are you looking for, D?"

"Where are all my chips?!"

Sam bit his lip, "Gina ate 'em all."

"All of them?!" Sam nodded reluctantly while Derek stared at him in disbelief, "What is she eating for two or something?!"

--

"I mean seriously though, Lindsay," Gina was deep in conversation about the latest random conversation. She tried her hardest to control her laughter, "when he turns into The Hulk, his pants don't come off! I mean does he have magically stretchable pants or something?!"

"I know right?!" Lindsay couldn't breathe from the deep shrieking she was in, "I have no clu--" Casey came through her door, huffing with anger.

"Stupid. Stupid. Stupid!" she muttered quietly to herself.

"Cas-Casey, what happened?" Lindsay asked in that same frightened nature that everyone else expressed that night.

Casey was startled and realized her two friends were sitting there. "Derek Venturi is the biggest bastard I know!" without waiting a response, she marched angrily to her room and slammed the door.

"Whoa…" Gina huffed lightly, bringing her attention to a still frightened Lindsay, "Hulk Mad!"

* * *

**Don't go Hulk on me guys...lol**

**Going away party next chap...I'll get it out soon. Gotta go back to cleaning. :)**


	20. Rollercoaster of Emotions

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned.**

* * *

Derek was stuck in his room for the fifth straight day. He'd been beating himself up pretty badly for screwing it up yet again. He tried to run the scenarios in his head about _why_ he kept those things from her. Derek honestly just didn't know why and now it pissed him off even more because the reasons he and Casey aren't together were unknown. He didn't know why he didn't tell her about Vegas or tell her about Lindsay. He didn't know why he just had to speak up and accuse her of not wanting the same things he did because deep down he knew. He knew she wanted things just as badly, she just over-thought everything and he knew this about her. He knew she had to be reasonable 100 percent of the time and that's who she was. That's who Casey McDonald was and he loved who she was. Yeah, so she was difficult but it was just someone he had to calm down at the end of the day. He loved being that person for her and at the same time she kept him under control in a weird way. He wasn't that jerk who went girl hunting all the time and he wasn't that asshole who would never call them back. He was Derek Venturi who fell in love with one girl. This one girl who worked wonders on him; who made him want to stay with only one person; who made him think about his future, where he saw himself settling down. A whole knew person.

It was still hard to comprehend that she'd be in another country tomorrow, getting her life together to start anew. But nonetheless, he was happy for her. As much as it killed him to know she'd be going, he still loved her enough to finally just let her go. Let her go because he screwed it up once more. He never wanted to do that to her again and every time he saw that look, it agitated him to no end. That and those angry exorcist eyes that formed weren't ones that he was fond of seeing either.

Staring at his cell phone, he wanted to call her. For the past few days, he wanted to call her but he just never did. There was a part of him that pathetically waited for her call because he wanted to be assured that she forgave him or something. Or that she was okay. He hated apologies and it was even more terrible over the phone. Derek Venturi was stubborn in his own right and now her time was winding down in Toronto. He didn't know what to say to her. She was leaving tomorrow and he honestly wasn't sure what he wanted to do. Just the thought of her leaving tomorrow made his body ache horribly. So what would he do? Go to his parent's house for her going away party tonight or sit around and mope because they fought again? Honestly he wasn't even sure if she wanted to see him.

--

"Baby, you feeling any better?" Sam asked with a bit of concern on his face. The poor girl had been throwing up for the past few days. "You spend more time in that bathroom than you do in bed," he joked with her to lighten the mood.

Gina's mood was _not_ lightened at all. "Does it look like I'm feeling any better?" she snapped lightly to which he frowned. "I'm sorry. I think maybe I just caught the flu or something." He nodded slowly to himself and Gina instantly softened because the poor guy had to deal with her moody act. "Come here, baby." He made his way over to her and she brought him in for a tight embrace, "I'm sorry, I keep getting angry with you, alright?"

"Alright, you've just been a bit scary lately." Sam threw a joking snort, "I didn't know if asshole Derek left him and rubbed off on you or something."

Gina rolled her eyes, "Please," she chided, "That bo--" her cell phone cut her off, putting it to her ear, "Hey, Casey."

"_Hey, are you guys coming over now?" _Casey asked with a slight hint of desperation.

"Yeah, yeah," Gina joked, "Well we're ready now. I'm gonna go check on Derek soon."

"_You think he's coming?_" a bit of hope rushed through her voice.

Gina grew annoyed in the matter of seconds, "He's not that big a jackass. I'm sure he's coming."

"_I hope so._" Casey couldn't help but smile from her end of the phone. "_I was going to call him earlier but--"_

"Let me guess…" Gina rolled her eyes again, "You chickened out?"

"_Yes!" _Casey could tell Gina was getting annoyed with her and didn't want to set her off because apparently she'd been doing that all week, "_We-well I'm gonna finish up around here. Come now so I don't go insane. Emily said she's on her way too."_

"Alright, alright," Gina snapped again and if she saw the frown on Casey's face, she'd apologize, "We'll be there. Bye." She hung up, "Come on, Sam, let's go. Let me go check on Derek." Before she left the room, she felt the need to remind him despite all the craziness she's been going through, "I love you."

Smiling at her, "I love you too."

--

Derek groaned and finally brought himself out of bed that day, still dressed in his flannel pajama pants and his worn out hockey shirt. His hair was a mess and he needed something to eat. He dragged his feet as he went into the kitchen to rummage through the cabinets for his weakness in junk food; even thinking a pizza would sound good at the moment.

"Derek!" he turned to look at a worked up Gina. "What are you doing?!" she yelped as she put on her earrings. "You're not dressed. We have to leave soon. Hurry up!"

He rolled his eyes and looked through the cabinets again, "Not going." Gina got even more worked up in the matter of seconds. She put her bag down and marched over to him, grabbing his ear to which he yelled, "OW! OW! OW! SAM! Get your moody girlfriend off of me!"

"Shut up, Derek!" she pulled him over to the couch and needed to give him a good talking to. There were those scenarios where she wanted to swear at or smack Casey but she couldn't. She wasn't _allowed_ to but here was Derek and she was definitely _allowed_ to do it now. She angrily let go of his ear and hovered over him; eyes so vicious that Derek hadn't even seen her _this_ angry before. It was like she was in a whole new angry bitch mode. He'd never understand women and their hormones. "You are going to listen to me right now, _okay_?"

Sam walked out and saw what was going on and decided not to get involved. He couldn't get to Derek but he certainly knew his extremely moody girlfriend could. Recently moody Gina was kind of frightening. Well, not kind of…she _was_. Heading back into his bedroom, Sam awaited the end of the battle with words.

"Are you having your woman times again, Gina?" Derek raised an eyebrow; annoyance dripping in his voice, "I'm not really up for you taking it out on me so--"

She reached over and smacked him upside the head, "Derek Venturi," his eyes narrowed as he rubbed the back of his head, "you're gonna go to that going away party today. You're going to see Casey and you're going to see her one more time before she leaves. You're going tonight, Derek!"

He shook his head stubbornly, "Not a chance. I can't go there." Gina's hand was clenching into a fist at his words, "I'd ruin everything just like she said I do. I want her to leave happy and me being there won't be happy for her. And I'm damn sure Casey doesn't even want to see me."

"Derek!" she screamed in frustration, "Quit your whiny bitch act because Casey wants to see you! I literally just spoke to her and she hopes to see you. She wanted to call you but she was scared!" he snorted loudly and it received him very hard stomp on his bare foot.

"OW!" he pulled his foot up and rubbed it, "Shit, Gina! Those are heels!!"

"You listen to me _right_ now." She was pissed and she meant business, "You are_ going_ to get your ass up. You are _going_ to get changed and you are _going_ to your parent's house. You _will_ say goodbye to Casey." He arched his eyebrows as he continued to rub his foot, "Casey," her tone of voice got softer in a split second, "wants to see you, Derek. She wants to see you just as badly as I know you want to see her. She feels horrible about what went down the other night and she's been blaming herself…"

Derek winced and he really didn't want Casey to blame herself. Yeah, most of the things _were_ her fault but he did his part in breaking them up too, "Really?"

"Yes," Gina took a seat on the coffee table in front of him and offered him a smile, "Derek. She's been saying things like she's really screwed it up with you or she regretted saying the things she said to you. That she overreacted." The anger switch turned on in a second as she brought herself off the table to hover again, "And why you two stupid ass idiots don't just talk to each other is beyond me. I'm tired of the bullshit! I'm tired of being the messenger that has to listen to the both of you." Her breathing became erratic as she continued her own tirade, "There are bigger situations that people have to deal with, Derek." He raised an eyebrow as her emotions started to take over, "People have life to worry about. New life!" she started to sniffle almost immediately and Derek was a little freaked out, "You and Casey are just a bunch of High School crap that everyone around here is a _bit_ tired of!"

"Hey-hey," Derek brought himself up off the couch and was a bit worried for his friend, "Gina, y-you okay there?" Gina didn't wait long as she hugged him and cried lightly, "Okay, d-don't cry. I don't do tears, Gina. Where's Sam…"

"Just go see her, Derek." She whispered, "Please…"

Derek took Gina's words and realized she was right even though most of the words that came out of her mouth were swear words or even crying. He knew the fact that Casey regretted things just like he did only made him want to see her more. He wanted to fix this and fix whatever it was that they struggled with. He wanted forgiveness and he wanted to see her one more time before she left; before she left him. He wasn't sure how things would turn out but he needed to try. He really _needed_ to try before she left. "Fine…"

"Great!" she pulled back and beamed brightly while it freaked Derek out again. "So just to clarify, you're going to see her tonight, right?!"

Derek nodded a bit reluctantly; scared of what she was going to do next, "Yeah?"

Gina smirked at him and it was just another one the emotional changes she's had in the span of 10 minutes. "God, you two are like an overly retarded love story…" Derek rolled his eyes and Sam finally came out of hiding as the yelling stopped.

"Sammy," Derek choked out a nervous laugh, "You need to keep eye on your girlfriend," Sam's eyebrows furrowed instantly, "She's on a rollercoaster of emotions…" he trekked over toward his room and continued his laugh, "It's like she's pregnant or something!"

Gina laughed out loud and Sam quickly joined her. She cleared her voice, "Re-ready to go?"

"Yeah," he settled his laughter and nodded, "Pregnant," Sam coughed out jokingly, "Yeah, right."

"Yeah," she quietly let out a chuckle and went over to Derek's door. "We're leaving now. Do you want us to wait for you?"

"No, Gina, I'll just drive my car!"

"Fine," she was a bit reluctant on that idea, "So we'll see you there, right?" her voice more demanding than asking.

"Yes, Gina, for the last time, I'm going to see Casey!" he called out from behind his door.

--

Casey sat down bored as hell at this "useless" party that she kept complaining about. She really didn't want a going away party because she certainly didn't want to celebrate the fact that she was leaving everyone; leaving her family, her friends, and Derek. Leaving any chance for them to talk and work it out. Despite Gina's words, she had an aching feeling that Derek wouldn't show up and it sucked. It sucked that they had to end things the other night on bad terms. Casey knew if she didn't go to his apartment that night, that they wouldn't have fought and he'd probably be there to say goodbye. But no, she just _had_ to test the waters and see how things could be. She regretted it. She regretted everything that happened…well those last few kisses still left fluttering feelings in her but they didn't last too long.

There was still a part of her that cursed herself for being so angry at him. And because she was so angry, she screwed up yet another chance for them. But she just couldn't understand. There were those burning questions that still loved to plague her when it came to Derek. Why he does the things he does sometimes. Why he doesn't think when he chooses to do something. Why he drove her crazy but not crazy enough for her to stop loving him. All those damned questions were all it could be. They were just questions and she'd never have the answers because she started to believe she'd never understand him.

She sat bored on the couch while waiting for her friends to come and save her from her insanity. Even having that glance at the door wondering if Derek might make an appearance and say goodbye to her but it would all just be left in her imagination. Nora and George were preparing everything while Edwin and Marti were helping with decorations. "Hey, Casey," Lizzie took a seat next to her big sister, "Looks like you got a lot on your mind?"

"Eh, you can say that. But it's," Casey shrugged with a pitiful laugh toward herself, "nothing really. I'm just thinking about New York and about seeing Dad again."

"You should be excited, Casey!" Lizzie expressed with bright enthusiasm, "Come on! This is New York! A whole new city and a whole new life; you're certainly going to come visit us again, so it's not like you're going to be missing forever. I know when I first moved to Calgary, I was scared but excited too. You know, I called you every day for a talk because of how afraid I was." Casey nodded in remembrance, "But I love it now. I can't wait to go back!" Casey's nose wrinkled while Lizzie had to correct herself, "I mean… I—uh can't wait to go back because I love it but I love spending time with you better—yeah."

Casey smiled at her sisters attempt to make her happy, "Thanks, Liz."

"No problem, Sis." Liz gave Casey a huge hug, "So…how's everything with--" Casey quickly cleared her throat of the subject while Lizzie pulled back and laughed, "Shutting up now."

There was a knock on the door and Casey had high hopes that it would be her friends. She opened it up to reveal a flustered Gina and an exasperated Sam. "Hey guys…" she raised an eyebrow as she gave them their hugs, "What's going on with you two?"

"She just keeps complaining about how tired she is and how many headaches she has or how dizzy she is!" Sam cried out in frustration, "She keeps taking it out on me and calling me her headache, naming it after me! Naming her freaking headache 'Sam'. Literally saying," he copied Gina's girlie hand gestures, "'I have a freakin' Sam right now!' or 'Sam, could you please stop because you're making my Sam grow more'!" Sam mocked her annoyingly.

Gina's eyes narrowed almost immediately and needed to defend herself. "Is it _my_ fault that you can't find a decent station to leave it on?!" she muttered loudly toward him, "You flip through every single station and it gives me a headache! It gives me a SAM!" she screamed in a whisper and Sam ignored her and went to grab a much needed drink. Gina looked over and collected herself to beam brightly in a split second, "Guess what _I _did?!" she sang aloud.

Casey snapped out of her watching-Sam-and-Gina-fighting trance. "What did _you_ do?!" she mocked Gina in that same sing-song voice.

Gina rolled her eyes and brought a bright smile back for her friend, "I made Derek go! He wasn't going to come. But I persuaded him to go!"

Without thinking, Casey brought a smile on her face, "Really? He's going to come?"

"Yup!" Gina nodded rapidly, "He said he _does_ want to come see you…" Gina decided to play off this as a grin was sported on her lips, "…and he wants to tell you he loves you and that he doesn't want you to leave. That he wants to be with you every single day and be married and have babies…" Casey shook her head at poor Gina's obvious lie. "Fine!" she complained with a slight wrinkling of the nose, "I got a little too ahead of myself, huh?" Casey nodded. "When should I have stopped?"

Casey couldn't help but laugh, "Somewhere right around babies?"

"Oh, babies…_right_…" she quietly murmured to herself as she looked around, "Where's the food?!"

Casey pointed behind her, "Kitchen," Gina bum-rushed past her and headed to the food.

Casey sighed with a slight hint of a smile and now she had no idea what she wanted to say to Derek once she saw him. Would it be awkward again? Would they bicker like they usually did when they were together? Would it finally be simple and fix what was wrong with them? Would he still want her to leave…she didn't know. But the thoughts would begin to flood her mind once more. Casey had a feeling that this more-than-boring party would become a thinking-about-Derek-scenarios party. And it would all be in her mind and she was kind of glad she would have something else to think about instead of the constant talk about her leaving.

--

"Where the hell is Emily?!" Gina groaned as she stuffed her face with Nora's store bought potato salad.

Casey had her chin resting in the palm of her hand as her eyes stayed glued to that door. The guy she was waiting for still wasn't there. "I don't know…" she sighed sadly.

"_mmm_I bet she's bringing_mmm_that electronic boyfriend of hers."

"Maybe…" Casey was hardly paying attention instead _he_ was still on her mind as her eyes were still stuck on that door.

"You know, I never used to like potato salad…" she observed the potato deliciousness, "So why's it so goo--" hungry Gina was interrupted by a knock on the door. "Maybe that's her." She put a big spoonful in her mouth, "I am having a love affair with this potato salad! _mmm_delicious…"

Casey threw her a blank stare and got up to answer the door. "Emily! Fin--" her eyes darted to that familiar face that she hasn't seen in over 5 years since he'd moved away. And there was a part of her that had the biggest feeling it would be him. That same goofy guy that Emily had a thing for all those years ago, "Sheldon Schlepper?!" she expressed in a light satisfaction toward this new admission. "Wow…"

"Hey, Casey," he gave her a quick hug, "long time no see, huh?" Casey nodded and threw Emily a stare while she gave Casey that innocent smile. Sheldon pulled back and looked around at the decorations, "So you're moving apparently."

"Yeah," Casey waved a meaningless hand, "but that's not important!" she smiled happily for her best friend, "How?! When?! _Why_?!" Sheldon and Emily were about to open their mouths to speak but Casey was quick. She turned around and looked for, "Sam!"

Sam came over to them, "Hey Em--" his eyes darted to the guy standing next to her, "Sheldon Schlepper?!" he squeaked, "Whoa!" Emily shook her head with slight embarrassment at how everyone was responding. But nonetheless, she was happy that they weren't making fun of him or her for that matter.

"Hey, Samuel," he gave him that weird manshake thing, "Long time no see, buddy." He was still just as dorky and quirky as ever, "Who's missing?" lisp still intact, "Derek Venturi's missing I needed to tha--"

As they all got reacquainted, Casey tuned out and realized Derek Venturi _was_ still missing. _Why_ was he still missing? Loads of people that she didn't care about came and the one person she wanted to see wasn't in sight. Just when the front door would open, she'd think it'd be him but it wasn't. Then it started to happen again. Those damned over-thinking thoughts started to flood her mind about if he was coming and if he wasn't, why not? Did he hate her that much to the extent that he wouldn't say goodbye to her. Did she really piss him off that night that it set him off? She wanted a goodbye and after about two and a half hours, she was sort of losing hope that she'd get one from him.

"So, Em…" Gina teased, "Is this our mystery guy?" She looked over at Casey, "This is the guy isn--"

"Excuse me." Casey darted off toward the bathroom, leaving Emily, Gina, and Sam with a look of concern as they watched her run away.

"Hm…" Sheldon thought he'd put his two cents in, "Remind me to stay away from what she ate."

"It can't be the potato salad..." Gina put another spoonful in her mouth, "It's just too good!"

--

Locking the bathroom door, Casey brought herself to look into that mirror; hands on the either side of the sink as her nose became red from the oncoming tears that formed. She so badly wanted him to come but she just didn't know what to do anymore. After that night, she just didn't know what she wanted to do about him. She kind of wanted to call him and see where he was but her and her phone had issues when it came to Derek Venturi. Calling him was such a hard thing to do. Communication with him was just difficult.

- - - -

_Casey paced around her almost empty room; cell phone in hand as she recalled their fight. She wanted to call him and she wanted to apologize but there was still a stubborn part of her that wanted him to do it first. She wanted him to call her and apologize for keeping yet another secret from her and this time, have a reasonable explanation. She needed that explanation and she needed to be swayed to his side again. She wanted to trust him because she still loved him. "Why do things have to be so damned difficult!" she paced once more, biting her lip as she looked down at his number. "I should just call him…yeah! I'll just call him. If I don't call, he won't ever call…" she looked down at her phone once more and almost pressed that green call button. "But what do I say?!" what would she say to him. The last words she literally said meant for him to "F-off" and what was she really supposed to say to that. _

_She ran into her bathroom and looked into the mirror. "Derek…" she rehearsed like it was a school play, "I'm sorry for being so difficult. I'm sorry…" her nose wrinkled, "you sound like an idiot, Casey!" She took a deep breath and tried again, "Derek, I'm sorry I got so worked up over something that shouldn't have even mattered. You never hurt me…" she rolled her eyes, "except keeping things from me and accusing me of not wanting to be in the relationship…" she groaned and made her way back to her empty bedroom. "He keeps things from me…" and that's what her problem was with him. He did wrong by that and he had the decency to go and find a way to turn it around on her. It made its way into her brain that maybe he'd always do that. She shook her head and threw the phone on her bed. "Not going to call."_

_- - - -  
_

Casey took the back of her hand and wiped the wet spot underneath her eye. "He doesn't want to see me." She stood up straight and sniffled, "Get over it, Casey. You're leaving tomorrow and things will be new. Derek Venturi is old news and it's really time to move on." She gave her reflection a smile, "Move on. He's moving on and I am too." She straightened out her clothes and opened the door to see a concerned Emily and Gina. "Hey, guys, come on. Let's go back down."

They weren't convinced in her "I'm okay" act. "Casey, he's going to come. He said he would. I'm sure he's just running late." Gina offered.

"Yeah, Casey," Emily rubbed her back to comfort her, "maybe he's just going to pick up a gift for you or something."

Casey shrugged with a sad smile, "It's okay. If he comes, he comes but I'm not going to let myself get down on my last night here. I want to enjoy my time with you guys. The one's who _actually_ care about me." She looked over at Emily, "And I'm certainly not going to let you get away without telling me all about you and Sheldon!"

Gina grinned, "Yeah, Emily…" there was that teasing smile that Emily recently started to hate, "You and this Sheldon fellow…" she looked over at Casey. "You need to fill me with these High School details. Now."

--

"Oh! Oh! Oh-oh!" Gina hogged the karaoke machine and dedicated the past song and current one to Sam, who sat frightened on the couch. "Sweet Child O' miiiIIIiinnnEeee!" she sang, dancing lightly for her boyfriend.

"God, could her voice get more shrill?" Emily whispered from beside Casey as they sat next to Sam and Sheldon on the couch. They felt really bad for Sam because he couldn't really tell her to stop but they could tell by his face that he wanted her to.

"I'm pretty sure it could…" Casey chuckled and had that occasional glance look over at the door then back at Gina. She was doing a pretty good job at not letting Derek's wimp act get to her. After another hour had passed, she'd burned it in her brain that the guy just wasn't going to show up. She'd rather be watching Gina singing terribly to Sam anyway.

"I happen to think she's doing a great job…" Sheldon expressed in his own excitement, grabbing hold of Emily's hand. "Sweet love of mineee…" he sang lightly for Emily, who wrinkled her nose happily. Casey could do nothing but be happy for her friend(s). She finally found that someone again. "Casey," Sheldon called and she brought her attention to him, "Did you know love is like hair? It can be found in strangest of places."

And that someone Emily found again still had the tendency to say the most awkward things. Casey was deadpanned, "That's nice to know…"

Gina finished up the song and scanned for another as a chorus of sighs and groans filled the room. "Oh, come on!" she looked at everyone, "I don't see any of you wanting to sing! So until then…it's _all _me." She found a good one, "Alright…let's try this again!" she muttered, picking one of her all time favorites and figured this one should work this time and if it didn't, she'd make it work. Clicking the right buttons, she turned to look at Sam again; a bright smile gracing her face with a slight bit of annoyance as well. "I dedicate _another_ song to Sam…" she lightly muttered through a tight sarcastic smile.

Emily and Casey felt like shooting themselves while Sheldon awaited another great song.

"Don't tell me she's going to sing songs all night?" Casey complained, "The least she could do sing _me_ a goodbye song instead of singing meaningless--" then Rilo Kiley's – "Does he love you?" started to play.

"Get a real job…" Gina started.

"Aw, this song!" Casey shrieked happily.

"All the immediate unknowns…" Gina continued.

Emily joined her enthusiasm, "I love this song…" her eyebrow raised in thought, "Wait…" Casey looked over at her, "she's dedicating _this_ song to Sam?" Casey's eyes grew narrow as well as Emily's. "Is she _trying_ to hint something?"

"I guess it all worked out…" Gina went on with the twisted love song, "There's a ring on your finger and the _baby's due out…_" Sam stared at Gina like she was a bit crazy for singing this song for him. It made absolutely no sense in why she would dedicate it to him. Then there sat Emily and Casey, who gave him the evil eye as Gina sang some more, "And he loves you…yeah, he loves you. And the two of you will soon become _three_…"

Sam looked over at the two glaring girls to his right. "Wh-what? I don't know why she's singing this song to me…" he stammered nervously.

"But now you love him!" She broke down in that strong voice that sounded extremely horrible. The shrillest of shrill. "And your _baby_! At last, you are complete!" she pulled a mini-air guitar strum. "But he's distant and you found him on the phone pleading, saying 'Baby, I love you and I'll leave her and I'm coming out to California'…"

"Sam…" Casey and Emily muttered as they both smacked him hard, "Are you cheating on our girl?!"

"No!" he cried out a bit scared because it was coming out of left field, "I have no idea why she's singing this song!" He looked over at Gina, who slowly swayed to the violin as the song faded, "I'm not having an affair!" he cried out to bring the attention on him, "Gina! I'm not having an affair! I swear!"

"I know you're not!" Gina yelped while everyone stared at her too. Sam, Emily, and Casey all let out a breath of relief while Poor Sheldon was confused at what was going on. He just thought it was a very beautiful tune. "Were you not listening to _any_ of the words I was singing?!" she whined in annoyance.

"I was! It was about man having an affair!" he explained as his palms got sweaty while everyone stared at him, "And I'm not!"

"Dammit, Sam!" Gina was getting entirely frustrated. "Why are you so slow?! Are you not catching on at _all_?!"

"Catching on to what?!" this continued and everyone stared as the entertainment finally came for the night. Even Nora and George came out of the kitchen to watch. Casey and Emily were pretty much used to it. It was highly entertaining because it would be fights about the most random of things. For Sheldon, he was a bit frightened by what was going on. He was not used to this from where he came from.

"I'm pregnant!" Gina exasperated and everyone gasped.

"WHAT?!" Casey, Emily, Edwin, Lizzie, Marti, Nora and George all yelped in surprise while Sheldon beamed, "Aw! That's great!"

Gina looked around at everyone's faces then back at Sam. "All the songs I've been singing…they had something to do with babies, Sam. It was the only thing I could think of doing because I didn't know _how_ to tell you…" she sighed and Sam stood up frozen in front her. Shock written all over his features at the news of his girlfriend announcing a pregnancy. "Sweet child O' mine…baby's due out…soon become three…" she ran a nervous hand through her hair, "So I'm pregnant, Sam…" he didn't say anything instead he just stood there, still shocked, "Please," she pleaded with that scared desperation in her voice, "Please say something. Sam, please. Anything, just say something!" The next thing anyone heard was a loud thud as Sam's body fell to the ground. "Great!" Gina let muttered as her hands were thrown up in frustration, "This is supposed to happen when the baby _comes_ out!" she looked around at the people watching, "Does anyone have Tylenol?" her hand made its way up to her forehead for emphasis, "My Sam has gotten worse."

* * *

**Songs mentioned: Guns N' Roses** - **Sweet Child O' Mine and Rilo Kiley - Does He Love You? (the whole admitting pregnancy/denying an affair scene is funnier if you know the song.) **

**So I will try to get the next chapter out but the next few days are gonna be hectic with my family dealing with some personal stuff. **

**Guys stay great...I haven't complimented you all in a while. :)**


	21. I Only Wanted to See You

**Disclaimer: Nothing owned.**

* * *

After a hectic half an hour of waking up an unconscious Father-to-be, Casey was able to take a seat. Taking this seat gave her time to take a good look around at the people. Her family; her friends; all the people she would be missing when she left.

She glanced at Emily and Sheldon, who were deep in an enthralling conversation. All she saw with them was that love and that spark. That rekindled romance and all should think was how cute it was in how Sheldon made his way back into her life. Casey and many others thought it was the oddest of relationships but he made her happy. If he made her happy, then that made Casey happy because that was her best friend. Emily was there for her since the day she moved to London. Literally the only friend that stuck by her through the tough years where she was Klutzilla, a grade-grubber, and through all the boy problems; she was like a sister. She _was_ her sister. And she would always be.

Casey had a small smile grace her lips as she looked over at Sam and Gina. Gina sitting next to her boyfriend on the couch as her head rested gently on his shoulder; Sam planting small kisses at the top of her head; it was adorable. Those two were going to have a baby and she still couldn't believe it. Sam woke up and let it all in that he's going to be a Dad…he was happy behind that terrified smile and Casey knew. She knew he was pretty excited about it because he really loved Gina. Casey always knew those two were going to go far. Even through the fights, they stuck together. They were two people that became her family and she wouldn't have it any other way.

Then there was her actual family. Man she was going to miss her family. Lizzie and Edwin were one and the same, flipping through one of Edwin's theoretical books. Those two always had a knack for theories and experiments. Lizzie was always her rock. That sister who helped her fend off the boys of the house. Then Edwin, who was the oddest of the Venturi's because he was completely different. She loved Edwin and his way of being the anti-Derek. He was a good kid and what more could be said. Then there was Marti; bored Marti, who was on a texting rampage. That girl was growing more and more every time she saw her. Marti always had the latest accessory or the latest celebrity crush. She was definitely a Venturi. A female Derek if she saw one. They were all just different people and she loved them. She'd always love them.

Turning her head toward the kitchen, she could see her Mother and George cleaning up all the mess that accumulated throughout the party. Through those tired and exhausted face, still shone the laughter and the happiness. She was really going to miss them because they were just great parents. Even if they were difficult to deal with or embarrassing, even, they were fantastic. Nora could get as crazy as she could get but at the end of the day, she would always accept the issue or help her make better of it. As long as she was happy, Nora always told her. George…that quirky son of a gun; that child trapped in a man's body. He was hilarious and easy going just like Derek could be but he still had a sense of dominance within the household; within the family and that's what made him great. She was trading two parents for one and it would be something to get used to. Hopefully it would be easy to get used to.

Everyone seemed to be their normal selves but at the same time everything was changing. Just months ago things were normal and now? Now there was new love in the group. Now there would be a new baby added to the clan. Now, one would be leaving the class of friends. Five friends that somehow became and she never even realized when that even happened. Now things were changing and they were all growing up. They were all big kids now, dealing with the real world and its situations.

Casey came to terms with the fact that Derek just wasn't going to come tonight. That he probably changed his mind for some odd reason and she wouldn't get to find out because she was leaving and he was nowhere to be seen. She's not going to lie and say she wasn't hurting because she was. She felt a bit empty because the one person she really wanted to see wasn't there. But as she always said…things happen for a reason. And with that, she'd be okay. She'd be able to get over this and move on…_finally_. She had everyone here with her and that was the next best thing. Her family and her friends were there for her on her last night.

"Casey?" she looked up to see Emily and Sheldon standing in front of her, bringing her out of her thoughts. "We're about to head out now…"

"Oh," Casey smiled as she got up and now she was this much closer to leaving. "Thanks for coming guys." She gave Sheldon a hug, "It is really great to see you again." And Casey had it in her to become a protective girlfriend, "And don't you ever hurt Emily, okay?"

Sheldon had his goofy but confident smile on, "Never." Casey smiled happily at that answer and knew he meant right by it. Sheldon decided to give Emily some time alone with her close friends, "I'm gonna start the car." Emily nodded and her eyes were getting watery. It was inevitable, her girlfriend was leaving her.

"God, Em…" Casey brought her in for a tight hug. "What am I going to do without you?"

"You better cry without me…" Emily wiped her tears as they both laughed.

"I'm pretty sure I will…" she sniffled, "I _am_. So I'll see you tomorrow morning, right?"

"Of course."

"I wanna cry too!" Gina blurted out as she ran over with Sam right behind her. She put an arm around both Emily and Casey, "Aww…Charlie's Angels is about to break up soon."

"When were you three _ever_ called Charlie's Angels?" Sam raised a pathetic eyebrow toward them. Gina's eyes narrowed at him and he quickly stopped. Angry and moody Gina wasn't going to disappear anytime soon. He cleared his throat and looked at Casey, "Casey, we're gonna head out too."

"Aw…" Casey started to feel the sniffles, "You two are having a freakin' baby. Who woulda thunk it?" she shook her head in disbelief still, "I still can't get over it." Casey looked over at Emily, "These two children are going to have a child of their own!"

Emily let out a laugh as she rubbed Gina's belly, "I totally had a feeling you'd be first. But that's because you and Sam have been together forever…" her nose wrinkled, "I totally should've bet Casey or something."

"Yeah, yeah," Gina let out a laugh, "we are. And I want to apologize for basically stealing your thunder tonight, Casey."

"No way," Casey shook her head and waved a hand, "You guys made it wayyyy better. I mean you guys are going to have a baby!" She gave Sam a big hug, "Sam, you're going to be a Dad!"

Sam had a genuine smile on his face. He was going to be a Dad and after letting it sink in for a while, he was excited. He could honestly say he_ was_ excited. "Yeah, girls, I'm totally going to be a Dad. You know, I kinda hope it's a boy…" his face lit up at the thought, "I want a little hockey star! But man a girl woul--"

Gina put a hand over his mouth, "Baby!" she brought her attention to Casey and Emily, "Look at him. I couldn't even wake him up for half an hour and now he's talking about whether it's a boy or a girl!"

"Gina, that's a fantastic thing." Emily told her. "This is amazing, you know, your child can be the first kid that I can actually use my knowledge toward! All those years of stupid University will finally pay off! Yes!" she announced proudly.

"Yeah, Emily," Sam told her seriously, "You're going absolutely nowhere when our child is born."

Gina nodded in agreement, "If that kid is crying at 4 in the morning, we're calling you." Emily rolled her eyes in response while Gina brought her attention over to Casey, "So Case," her face was a bit down. She felt sorry for Casey and behind that whole "I'm okay" façade, Gina knew the poor girl was hurting. Those occasional glances toward the front door didn't go unnoticed. "I really thought he was going to come. I was so _sure_ he was going to come."

"Yeah, Casey," Sam added, "I really thought he was going to go after Gina almost killed him…"

"I'm sure he has a good excuse," Emily rubbed her back to comfort her to which Casey snorted. "Okay, maybe not."

"Yeah and as much as I appreciate the abuse, Gina," Casey told with a sad smile, "I'm okay. It's okay he didn't come. It just makes things easier when I leave tomorrow." Letting out a sigh of admittance, "To tell you the truth, I don't even know what I would've said if he was here. I probably would've been a wreck in my own right." The words came out and sadly, she wasn't sure if she believed them herself. She kind of thought saying it aloud would help convince herself that she felt that way. It didn't really work.

"I'll be wrecking him when I get home!" Gina turned on the angry bitch switch and now everyone knew why. Pregnancy brings on a range of emotions; seconds apart from one another. It was sort of comical if you saw it.

"And I'll help!" Emily joined in to help cheer Casey up.

Casey smiled at her friends who always had her back. Two friends that she wouldn't have in New York, "You guys really don't have to." She gave Gimily a big hug, "You two are the craziest people I know." Casey looked over at Gina, "And you, you better call me when you are having that baby because I will be on the next flight here. And if I'm not here," Casey brought on the serious, "don't you dare have it yet, okay? You hold little him or her in until I get here."

"Me too!" Emily joined in again.

"I promise…"Gina sniffled this time, "The Godmothers of my baby _have_ to be there." Casey and Emily were about to cry happy tears in an instant, "Yes," Gina had a confirming voice. "Sam and I," she looked at Sam and smiled, bringing her attention back to Casey and Emily, "We already agreed that you two are the baby's Godmothers."

All three girls hugged one another as the tears came freely. "God, you three," Sam shook his at them.

All three stopped and stared blankly at him, "Get over here now," they all got out in unison.

"Fine…" he went over and joined the hug, "Are you guys happy now?"

"Yes!" they all said in unison once more.

"Ugh!" Casey pulled back as she groaned jokingly, "Why must I leave now?!" Casey let the silence pass for a second and couldn't help but joke one last time. Looking at Gina and Sam, "I just can't believe I'm going to miss you two attempting to handle this."

Sam and Gina frowned.

--

Casey made her way to her apartment and boy what a day it'd been. She was a bit drained from the rest of the goodbyes she had gotten from the family. It was sad but it was happy because she knew she was closer to leaving and starting over in New York. And at this point, she really needed to just start over.

She sighed as she fiddled with her keys to find the right one and she stood frozen at what was in front of her. There he sat with his back against her front door, holding a little bouquet of Calla Lilies to his side. Derek always knew those were her favorite. He stared straight ahead not even realizing she was standing there. She just watched him for a second. Running a nervous hand through his hair, Casey could tell he had a lot on his mind. What was running through his mind was still unknown but she was eager to find out.

All she could think at that moment was, "He came to see me…" Slowly, she approached him, clearing her throat slightly to make her presence known. "De-Derek?"

- - - -

"_Yes, Gina, for the last time, I'm going to see Casey!" Rummaging through his closet for something decent to wear, he was lightly panicking in thought. Panicking about seeing her; about what he would say to her. If things would be awkward; if things would be okay, he didn't know. Or if she really did want to see him like Gina claimed she did. He just knew he wanted to see her. It was really that simple. These thoughts shouldn't even exist. Over-thinking situations was Casey's job, not his. And he wasn't going to start now. He just knew seeing Casey was going to happen. He was going to make sure it happened. _

_Finally finding the right outfit to wear for her, he looked at himself in the mirror. Even granting a smirk at how sharp he looked. "She'll jump you once she sees you…" his nose wrinkled at what he just said, "Don't be a pervert. You're not going to anticipate anything; just going to say Goodbye and…" Derek just couldn't help it. He was a guy and it burned in his brain to think it, "maybe get som--ugh! Stop, Derek." _

_He fixed his dress shirt and he never really wore dress shirts. He was a sport tee and polo kind of guy. Dress shirts were saved for special occasions. Seeing Casey was always a special occasion for him and he made sure he looked good. And he _did_ look good. _

"_Casey, goodbye?" he shook his head at the thought and he could hardly even get the words out. "Stupid New York," he muttered at the cursed state that was taking his girl away from him. He really didn't want to say goodbye. He wanted to work things out. Maybe even convince her to stay because after he had time to think about it, he really didn't want her to go. If they were going to work things out, he wanted her to be with him; not in some other country. "Ugh, other guys in New York…" his fists clenched at the thought of it. But today he was supposed to say goodbye. __He wasn't going to let those stupid thoughts get to him. __Whatever else he could get through when he saw her, he'd just have to wait and see. Nodding to his reflection, "Alright, Casey," he quickly grabbed his keys and headed out the door. _

_--_

_Derek drove his way to London. While on his way, he quickly realized he was going to be in a room full of people. They probably wouldn't get any talking done. He'd be hounded by his parents, even being forced into small talk with his friends. As much as he wanted to talk to them, he only wanted to see Casey. He wanted to talk just to her. He always loved when it was just the two of them; no one else, just them. There wasn't some act they had to put on because they were themselves with each other; the difficult and the stupid. It made him laugh because that was just who they were and it wouldn't change. He loved it. And without much thinking thereafter, Derek made an illegal U-Turn and decided to go back. If he was going to say goodbye to Casey, he was going to do it one-on-one. No other people, no distractions; just them. _

_--_

_Parked in front of her building he debated what to do. If he would just wait in his car or if he would just sit in front of her door. He wasn't quite sure what time she'd be back so he thought hanging out in his car would be best. About an hour into his waiting, he grew bored instantaneously. No decent music played at this hour and he had no one to talk to. A part of him kind of wished he went to the party instead because he would be the opposite of what he was feeling in this car. He was insanely bored. "I'm a Barbie Gi—Dammit!" Yes, there really wasn't any good music on._

_Minutes later came the growling of his stomach. Then it hit him that he hadn't eaten. Seeing Casey took his mind off of food and that was completely mindboggling because the girl made him eat. Just the thought of situation made him want to eat. Looking at the time, he figured he'd go get that damned pizza he was deprived of earlier. "Stupid Gina…" he started the car, "Oh! Flowers too!" he knew he'd forgotten something on his way here and he knew Casey loved her flowers. _

_--_

_He was fully satisfied now. Sitting there with his back against Casey's apartment door, he went over what he'd say to her when he saw her. What she might say to him when she saw him. What could possibly happen but he quickly excused his perverted mind because the last time he almost had her, it was taken away in an instant. Boy did that hurt him. It hurt him mentally _and_ physically. He didn't want to go through that again so he knew it would be best to just talk. Talk then maybe… "Dammit!" He seriously was having major deprivation issues. _

_Not too long after his ongoing battle with his perverted mind, brought him half way into Casey's apartment. He looked up and could see that familiar half blonde, half brunette stared down at him; her face upside down from his angle. He quickly stood up and faced that girl who pretty much saved him and broke him at the same time, depending on which way you looked at it. "Hey."_

"_Hey, Derek?" she raised an eyebrow, "I thought Casey's at her going away party in London?"_

"_Yeah," he nodded along, "She's there but I thought I'd surprise her here when she got back."_

_Lindsay smiled happily for him and the girl knew how crazy he was about her roommate. "She'd love it." She took a glance at her cell phone to stop the awkwardness that ensued between the two of them. "So…uh…well I gotta go. You want to wait inside the apartment?" _

_Derek was tempted. There was TV, a comfy couch, and probably more food. Even the thought of the bat-juggling bear on Casey's TiVo was a done deal but he thought about the look on her face when she'd see him sitting there waiting for her. How he'd probably win her over with that gesture and that would be way better than TV, a couch, food, and a bear. Casey was more important that all those things. "Nope. I'll just sit out here and wait for her."_

"_Okay. Bye, Derek." She walked off, locking the door behind her as she walked away._

"_Hey, Lindsay!" she turned to look at him, "I just wanna say, you know, thanks for not doing anything with me that night."_

"_I wouldn't do that to her," Lindsay offered him a kind smile, "I just kind of wish I told Casey that morning, you know?"_

"_Yeah," he shrugged, "Well I don't want to keep you." She threw him a wave and went on her way. Meanwhile, Derek took an uncomfortable seat on the concrete that was grounded on Casey's floor. Thinking about her and seeing her. "It'll be worth it."_

- - - -

Needless to say, he was startled as he darted up. Wiping the palms of his hands on his jeans, he picked up the flowers. There was that slight smile that made its way to grace his lips at the sight of her. Just as beautiful as ever, though, he could see she'd been crying. A small part of him had a feeling it was about him. But he didn't really care though because seeing her in front of him just made his day much better. He'd been waiting for her and he'd been waiting for that look. And it was just like he predicted it would be: worth it. "Hey, Case."

She walked up closer and she had that same smile on her lips. Her eyes a bit teary due to all the emotion that just ran through her at the sight of her ex coming to see her one more time before she left. And with the way things went, she really burned it in her brain that she wouldn't see him tonight. She accepted that she _wasn't_ going to see him. "Wh-what," she nervously stood in front of him, "are you doing here?"

"I," he shrugged, "came to say goodbye?" Derek decided a joke could be good right now; a joke that was hiding actual truth. "Maybe even convince you to stay?" he had his eyebrows raised with hope.

"Derek…" she chided, shaking her head slightly with a chuckle.

Slowly nodding to himself, "Not staying," he wrinkled his nose, "got it."

Casey took a good look and the boy cleaned up pretty nice when it came down to it. She was so used to seeing him in a casual shirt but tonight he was dressed for success and it kind of made her proud to know it was for her. "So someone's looking pretty sharp today," she teased, "Hot date?"

"Yeah," Derek had it in him to smirk at the girl, "She's pretty damned gorgeous if I say so myself."

Casey had a bit of a cocky tone in her, "She tries…" then a small part of her grew slow, "Wait you're talking about me right?" he threw her a blank stare, "Right." She looked over at her favorite flowers. "Are those for me?"

Derek pursed his lips in thought, "Only if you don't hit me with 'em."

"I won't." She beamed as he cautiously gave them to her. "Thanks, Derek," she looked up at him with a faint smile, "I really appreciate it." He nodded as he rubbed the back of his head in an awkward motion. "How long have you been here?" she asked from behind the flowers.

"Hours," he snorted, "It kinda felt like forever because _someone_ took her sweet time to get back home."

"Hey!" she pouted, defending herself, "How was I supposed to know you'd be here while I was stuck at _my_ going away party."

"I'm just messing with you, calm down." She did as he continued, "I thought about going to the house but," he shrugged a shoulder, "I only wanted to see you." Bringing his attention to the ground, "I only wanted it to be us toni--" he would kindly be interrupted as Casey brought her arms to wrap around his neck, pulling him into a kiss. It was the only thing she could think of doing at that moment with how she was feeling. She was on an emotional rollercoaster herself, him being here in front of her. All the waiting she did for him and come to find out he was the one waiting for her. It meant he really did want to see her and say goodbye. His arms pulled her in tighter around her waist as he brought her against her front door. "Jeez," he mumbled against her lips, "Second time in a row," he continued to the side of her neck, "you've attacked me…"

Casey smacked his back with the flowers, "Don't ruin this…" Derek snickered lightly in response.

"Casey," her eyes fluttered shut at the feel of his breath on her skin. Derek brought his kisses up to her ear and man how he missed being able to do this. Whispering seriously, he had to tell her now, "I'm sorry about everything. I'm sorry."

"It's over." She breathed as he pulled back to look at her; eyes opening slowly to assure him, "It's done, Derek; all that is done." And she really meant that in all honesty. Having him in front of her right now, she couldn't care less about their issues. This is what she wanted and the fights and the arguing weren't going to get in the way now.

Derek nodded and brought his hand up to put some hair behind her ear. It was his turn to take a good look at her and she really meant it. Just like that, their issues could be dissolved and he was thankful that it was that easy. It only let him know that she was just as tired of the fighting as he was. That she just wanted to fix things like he did. Fighting got exhausting after a while and he really hated fighting with her. He hated it so much.

Derek could see her nose start to turn red and the tears started to form in the creases of her eyes. "What's the matter?" he asked her softly, bringing his hand up gently to touch the side of her face.

"I waited for you all night," she let out a pathetic laugh as Derek took his thumb to wipe the tear that fell, "I kept staring at that door, waiting for you." He felt his heart tug at her words. "I was scared you weren't going to come see me before I left." Casey brought her attention to the ground as she admitted more of her pathetic night of waiting, "I actually thought you didn't _want_ to see me."

Derek tilted her chin up, "I'm not _that_ big of a jerk. I was _going_ to come see you…" he assured her as he bit his lip to contain the laughter, "or else Gina would have my head." Casey was able to stifle a laugh while Derek's face washed with seriousness again, "You mean too much to me, Casey. I wasn't going to let you go without saying goodbye, alright?" she nodded and he wasted no time in bringing his lips to meet hers again. All the issues melted. All the problems dissolved. All the feelings they felt for one another were still there and that's all that mattered.

"Oh my God…" two old women scoffed from behind them to which Derek and Casey quickly pulled apart. "Kids these days…" they shook their heads with disgust as they began their trek up the stairs, "No shame at all…"

Derek smirked as he brought his attention back to Casey. "We apparently have _no_ shame, Casey."

"We really don't," they both chuckled lightly, "So…" she pursed her lips, "you wanna come in?"

"_And_…" he smirked.

She shook her head at his perverted act. It was one that would never go away. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Perv Boy." Turning to open her door, "We're just going to talk."

"Stop, Casey," he teased sarcastically, "You're getting me all excited."

Casey couldn't help but laugh again as they headed into her apartment. "Uh-huh. I guess Lindsay isn't home yet," heading into her bedroom, "So I'm alone in a room with my ex…" she quietly murmured to herself, "convenient…"

Derek was too busy to even hear her speaking to herself. Looking around the pretty empty room, he could see that she was really leaving. It started to actually hit him that she would actually be leaving soon. It kind of sucked. It wasn't kind of…it did suck. "Damn…"

"What?" she asked as she kneeled down near her luggage, setting her bag and flowers down.

"So you're really leaving?" he felt a sort of panic run through his voice, "You're actually leaving, Casey? It's real?"

Casey stood up and had herself a look at the almost bare room. Just a month ago she had everything settled in its place and it was normal. Now it was just a very spacious room. She was really going miss all the fun moments she had with Derek in here. The stupid pillow fights, the accidental cuddle buddy time, the chasing with her scissors; it was all fun before crap started to happen. It used to just be so simple with them and because complications got in the way, the room was now bare.

Derek could see she had a lot on her mind. Coming up behind her, wrapping softly his arms around her waist, he shared her vision of the place. Resting his chin softly on her shoulder, it just felt so natural to do it and she was letting him do it. She wanted him wrapped around her just as much as he wanted to do it. She wanted his face so close to hers. Standing there in his warm embrace allowed her to melt away the issues that stood in their way. "Yeah, Derek," she let out a quiet sigh, "I'm really leaving." Casey could feel his body tense at her words. Turning her head slightly to see his face, she smiled, "You know, and weirdly enough, you're the only one I really wanted to see tonight. You're the_ only_ one I really wanted to see before I left."

Derek managed his own smile at her words. "Is that so?"

Nodding slowly, "Yeah," she placed her hands on his as they rested softly around her waist. A part of her wanted to make sure he was actually there with her and he was. "Pathetic isn't it?"

"Hardly," he managed a slight snort, "Not as pathetic as waiting at your door for a billion hours. Passing up the chance to wait inside your apartment where there was a comfy couch and a TV."

"Lindsay offered you to wait in, didn't she?" he nodded, "Why didn't you then? Your ass must hurt from sitting for hours…"

"Aw, you're thinking about my ass, Case?" she pinched his hand to which he laughed, "I wanted to see your face." He settled his laughter in trade for a serious admittance, "I wanted to see your face when you saw me and I gotta tell you, it was everything I thought it'd be and more."

"Really now?"

"Yup," he gave her a kiss on that space where her neck and her shoulder meet, "You were surprised that I was sitting there because you didn't expect it. You got all flustered at the thought of me waiting. I could see it in your face. As much as I felt like leaving sometimes, I couldn't."

"I'm glad you waited," she turned her head to look directly at him. In that instant she was already lost in his eyes. "I'm glad you didn't leave."

Leaning his head closer to hers, Derek brought his lips to brush softly against her very inviting ones. Pulling back, Derek gave her a sincere smile, "Me too." As he looked at her, he could actually read her. He could read that this is what she really wanted. That she wanted the two of them to be here right now, together. But a part of him still felt like he needed to be sure that things were alright; that things between them were copasetic. That there weren't any underlying anger issues of some sort because when it came to Casey, she could pretty pissed off about things that happened years ago. "Casey? You know, I'm really sorry about everything that went on. I hope you know that."

Casey turned around to face him; his arms still tightly wrapped around; her arms gently placed around his neck, "I know." She offered him a kind smile, running her hands through the short reddish-brown strands, "I'm just as bad as you are; if not worse," she managed a pathetic laugh, "I am difficult and I know that. _Trust _me, I know that." He nodded along rapidly to which she rolled her eyes, "Thanks for the assertion, Derek." Casey looked down and back up at him with reluctance. She needing her own assurance, "So do you forgive me for everything too?"

"Of course," he answered almost immediately. "I could never be mad at you for longer than the actual fight." Letting out a breath, he admitted, "I seriously just hate fighting with you. I hate it, Casey. I do. Well I still love our joke fights but the serious ones suck ass."

"It's the worst, isn't it?" she chuckled, scanning his face. Scanning that face; every part of that face she's kissed before and it would be the last time. "You wanna hear something sad but interesting?" he raised his eyebrows for her to continue, "You're still _all_ I think about, Derek," she had to let it out. A part of her had a feeling that the guy was going to get a good ego boost out of this but she really didn't care. She was feeling this way and she wanted him to know. "For the past month and up until right now, you're all I think about and I always wonder if you do the same."

"I do," he told her seriously as he planted a peck atop her head, "More than you know."

She sighed heavily and as he stood there in front of her. Scanning his face again; those eyes, that mouth she loved so much. She was really going to miss him. A part of her felt extremely sad that she was actually leaving in a few hours. It was really going to happen. It was all so real now. "I wish we had more time, Derek."

"Yeah, me too…" he began to nuzzle her neck to which she lightly giggled, "We have all the time in the world, Case," he left light kisses as he pulled back to look at her, "We have as much time as you want…" Derek looked at her lips; those enticingly inviting lips that haunted his dreams for the past month. The only lips he'd been wanting for a good amount of time and he couldn't wait anymore. Not too long after that, his lips met hers again. He always got what he wanted but unfortunately for him, Casey didn't wait long herself. She pulled back to which he groaned in frustration, "Hey! I thought that was the perfect build up for _the_ kiss."

"I'm sorry," Casey let out a laugh while Derek pouted, "I really just need to know that you're going to be okay with me leaving tomorrow. That you're not going to be begging me to stay after this. I really can't deal with this if it's going to be hard." His face fell dramatically and it pained her. The flicker of hurt tugged at her insides. "Derek," she whispered softly, "please."

All he could think of saying was no but he knew he couldn't. He knew she was leaving and that _was_ okay but now that it was so close and she would be leaving in a few hours, it was hard. Having her right now and actually being together? It was very hard. It was hard to just pretend like he was going to be okay with her leaving. But nonetheless, he just had to give her what she wanted. That was his weakness, giving in to Casey's needs and he'd never done that with anyone other than himself; just her. That and he really couldn't pass up any offer when it came to Casey. He wanted her. He wanted her...bad. "I'm okay with you leaving…" managed to slip from his lips in a quiet murmur.

She wasn't completely convinced but she had nothing in her to fight him on it. Casey wanted him and she sure as hell knew he wanted her. What better way to say, "Goodbye?" a slight smile hinting on her lips.

Derek reciprocated faintly, "Goodbye." He slowly leaned forward and brought his lips to meet hers. Derek was finally getting the real deal here. Not some imaginary hallucination or a quick peck. It was those lips that he'd been wanting and he was getting them. But with this kiss came an outpour of emotion. They both knew that it would be one of their many last kisses. And they both felt a sort of pain but happiness behind the soft feel of one another's lips.

Casey pulled back and sniffled lightly, "God, you're gonna make it really hard for me to leave, aren't you?"

Derek brought his hand up and gently grazed her cheek, bringing his lips to meet hers once more. "Maybe," was a simple mumble that escaped his lips as they continued.


	22. She was Her and He was Him

**Disclaimer: I don't own a damned thing. **

* * *

"The bums…" Gina continued from the backseat.

"Gina…" Casey continued to chide.

"The rude people…"

"Gina…"

"The subway is full of diseases…"

"Gina…"

"Have you ever seen that movie 'KIDS?' The city is full of aids!"

"Gina…"

"It's known as 'The City that Never Sleeps'" Gina continued to point out everything that was wrong with New York, "We all know you _love_ sleep, Casey. You love it and you can't live without it. Toronto allows you to sle--"

"GINA!" Emily finally screamed out for her to stop.

"Fine!" Gina wrinkled her nose as she stopped, "Don't get mad when some bum comes up to you and spits in your mouth…"

"You see what you're leaving me with?!" Emily shrieked toward Casey next to her.

Casey took a good look at her two bickering friends. She offered them a simple smile. "I'm really going to miss you guys."

Emily and Gina settled themselves, "Us too, Casey."

The three arrived at the airport and the tears were brought on in an instant. "Alright, you two, we gotta keep this short. The airport security guys are dickheads." Casey got her luggage out of the trunk of Emily's car as they stood in front of airport entrance. "I love you guys…" Casey felt light sniffles coming, "I will call you both once I land, okay?"

"You better!" Gimily said in unison as they gave her a group hug.

Gina pulled back, "Sam told me to tell you bye. He had a really bad headache this morning."

Emily managed a quiet snort, "Probably when his head hit the coffee table…" Gina threw her a glare as Emily looked over to Casey. "Sheldon also wanted to say goodbye but he made plans with his brother. So he sends his love."

Casey nodded and brought that teasing smile, "Aw, you two and your men. Cute."

Gimily's faces fell at her words. "So are you really okay, Casey?" Emily started, "I mean with what happen--"

"Excuse me?" The airport security guard approached the girls. "I'm gonna need you to mo--"

"CAN'T YOU SEE WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF SOMETHING?!" Gina screeched as the hormones took over her.

"Come again?" the guard let out in the quiet but scary tone.

Gina's eyes widened as she realized what she just did. "I said we're just leaving, heh-heh…" she laughed nervously as she looked over at Casey and Emily, "We're gonna have to go…"

Emily shook her head at Gina while she gave Casey another quick hug, "Alright, Casey. We're gonna go. But call us, okay?"

"Yeah, Casey," Gina gave her one too as her eyes kept glancing at the angry guard. "Cheer up, okay?"

"I'm fine. I promise I'm fine." She pulled back and whispered, "Didn't I tell you they were dickheads?"

"Definitely," Emily and Gina nodded rapidly. "Have a good flight, Case."

"I will. Bye, guys."

Emily got into the driver's seat while Gina took shotgun. They gave a final wave to Casey as she entered the airport's automatic sliding doors. "Man," Emily sighed, "It already feels like we're missing someone."

"Yeah," Gina shrugged, "well we should definitely call that Lindsay. She's a hoot."

"Replacing Casey already?" Emily raised an eyebrow.

"Not at all," Gina shook her head almost immediately, "It's just that girl is an actress, okay? That means we'll get to go to parties and screenings. And if she gets famous one day...maybe meet celebrities…"

Emily was loving the idea of celebrities. "Oh! Celebrities!" immediately she felt like she was cheating on Casey...so she needed to assure herself that it was okay. "I mean Casey _would_ want us to hang out with Lindsay. We'd be doing Casey a favor, right?"

Gina smiled smugly to help her feel better. "Yep--" she was interrupted by the airport guard knocking on her window loudly. "We're leaving dammit!!" they drove off finally. "Dickheads for real…"

--

Casey looked around the place. The people sitting in the waiting chairs, the restless kids, who ran around to pass the time; the parents who chased their kids around to stop them from getting into trouble; the teens bored out of their minds, waiting for the stupid plane to board; that young couple who sat next to one another; her head resting gently on his shoulder as they laughed at the contents that lingered in a magazine. She stared pathetically and Casey McDonald was always a romantic. Yeah, till this day she was still a romantic and what that couple shared was a simple romance. What she and Derek shared was a complication. She awoke this morning with a whole anticipation with what was next to come in her life and what knowledge was acquired became known as… a complication.

She sighed in remembrance.

- - - -

_There they lay on her bed; the sun seeping through the window after a night of much needed love. He held her again the way she remembered; that tight but not so tight feeling. It's that feeling where she felt safe being in his arms and that was one of the extraordinary things about what they had; that dynamic where it was simple between them. As simple as it could ever get between one another, were these little moments where it was just them. No one else; just Derek and just Casey and it was so easy for them to get lost in one another. The fighting, the arguing, the joking, and the torturing were just another part of them. But there was more and as they lie there now…it _was_ more. _

"_You're shitting me, Casey…" Derek expressed in slight shock, "Sam and Gina…a baby?!" he squeaked. "I totally called it!" _

"_Did you now?"_

"_Yup," Derek nodded along as he recalled, "The crazy girl went from yelling at me to almost killing me with her heels to crying, then to friggin' beaming at me like a nutcase. It was frightening, Casey."_

_Casey laughed as her head rested on his chest; their fingers intertwined to the side. "It's true. Sam and Gina are having a baby. You totally missed her karaoke confession in telling him. I mean when Gina needs to let it out…she's going to go _all_ out. Then poor Sam ended up fainting!" _

"_Tsk tsk…" Derek let out a pathetic laugh as Casey nodded against his chest. "Sammy's gonna be a Dad. That's insane."_

"_Tell me about it." Then the other thought struck in remembrance, "Oh! And guess who Emily has been secretly going out with…"_

"_Sheldon Schlepper?" _

_Casey lifted her head as her eyebrow rose, "How did--"_

"_I saw him months ago when he just moved back from Newfoundland. He's like staying with his brother here or something." _

"_Small world," Casey's snorted._

"_My point exactly. So…" She rested on her elbows to hear this story, "I didn't feel like talking to him much and I told him Emily was still single and ready to mingle. Or I might've even told him that Emily was still waiting for him to come back for her." He shrugged in thought, "I don't know but that really got him and it was the best way to get him to leave me alone." They both chuckled at the thought of Schlepper being an awkward talking nut. "And so I gave him her phone number and voila…"_

_Casey shook her head and put on a teasing smile, "Well aren't you the matchmaker…"_

"_Sure…" he smiled and felt the need to gently cupped the side of her face, swaying gently his thumb on her cheek, "Case…" he whispered to her seriously as her head leaned sweetly on his hand, "I wan--" her cell phone's alarm went off and he groaned at the interruption. _

_Casey's nose wrinkled as she reached on her floor to grab it to turn off. She sat up with her back against the headboard, staring blankly ahead, "Man, I have to leave soon…" she pouted jokingly. He nodded slowly as he sat up next to her. "You know," she looked over at him and smiled sincerely, "this was probably the most perfect way to say goodbye, Derek." Casey leaned over, putting her hands on either side of his face and pulled him in for a kiss. Pulling back, she could read the pain that flooded his eyes, "What's the matter?" concern dripping in her voice._

_His eyebrows arched inward as that pain still paraded through his features, "Don't leave me…" he whispered in front of her. _

"_Derek," she shook her head softly; her own eyebrows arching with that same pain reflecting off him, "I have to leave. You know this." She brought her legs underneath her as she brought her whole attention on this guy that didn't want her to go. "We talked about this last night. You said you were okay with me going."_

"_I know, I know." He _was_ "okay" with her leaving but waking up to her in the morning and taking a good look at her, he just couldn't be without her. Those dreadful months that they were apart, was the worst period of his life and now that he had her here in front of him…it was hard. As he stared directly at her now and into those beautiful blue eyes, he knew he didn't want her to go. When he told her he was okay with her leaving, he had an aching feeling that this morning he'd change his mind and he did. "I know, I told you that, Casey, but…"_

"_Don't do this, Derek," she begged and she could practically feel the tears start to form in the creases of her eyes, "please don't do this…" she looked down to avoid showing her emotion. He knew she was pained by his words. Derek brought both his hands on either side of her face this time and gently brought her eyes to look at him once more, "You're not supposed to do this…" she whispered, her nose becoming red from the agony she was slowly starting to feel. "You're supposed to let me go and everything was going to be fine._

"_Casey," he whispered softly in front of her face, stifling a slight laugh toward her, "it wasn't going to be that easy." Derek's laughter settled as he really hated to see her cry, "Don't cry, Case. Please."_

"_Derek," she sighed tiredly, "don't make this harder than it has to be." Shaking her head, she looked directly into his eyes, "I have to leave. I _have_ to leave."_

"_You don't have to, Casey," he assured her, "You can stay here with everyone you know and you love. You can go to school here and you can find a job here." He tried to express it in his most positive voice, "You can be here with me…" he murmured quietly, "with me."_

_Her eyes closed and her brows arched as her hands grasped his wrists gently. For a second she thought about his words. That she could just stop now and stay here with him and with everyone she did love. Things wouldn't have to change and she'd have him. She'd have Derek again. But as the second passed, she knew if she gave up and stayed, she'd be her typical self. She'd still be Casey McDonald who stayed with what was familiar and not going out to face a new life; a new challenge. "Learn to live, Casey…" she whispered to herself. "That's what you told me."_

"_What?" he shook his head and let out a joking laugh, "What happened to 'I will never listen to Derek' huh?" he lightly mocked her tirade but she didn't laugh and his face fell immediately, "Case--"_

"_I can't stay, Derek," she shook her head. "I can't stay and be who you accused me of being. I'm not scared, Derek, because I can face the world out there." His face expressed much exhaustion from all this, "You told me to learn to live, Derek. I'm going to New York to do that. I'm ready for it. I've _been_ ready for it. A new challenge in my life and a new experience--"_

"_So…" he quickly brought his hands down to his side, "you want a new challenge and a new experience that doesn't include me anymore?" his tone was a bit rude._

"_Not at all," she offered him a tiny laugh at how easy it was for him to jump to conclusions, "I told you that even if I'm in New York and you're here…" she shrugged lightly, "If you still want us then I'll want us too." She read the bit of reluctance on his face, "D-do you not want us, Derek?"_

"_I want us," he assured her and he really did, "but I want us here. I want you to stay here with me. I don't want you to go to New York…" panic flooded the sound of his voice. He thought about the possibility of a long distance relationship and he knew he couldn't do it. Sitting there, he knew it wouldn't work because he'd miss her too much. He'd worry about other guys or fellow students at her school. He would worry and possibly get jealous…hell he was already jealous at the thought. He couldn't. He really couldn't let her go out there on her own if he was stuck in Toronto. He wasn't going to do that to himself, "I don't want you to leave me, Casey. Just stay!" he tried again._

_Casey grew a bit irritated at his greedy act toward her departure. She had a strong feeling that he was going to pull something like this but they had a great night and a few minutes of happiness in the morning. She sort of thought that this wasn't going to happen; that he maybe would just let things be simple for them. What she had in front of her just confirmed her suspicions "Don't be selfish, Derek. Just don't be selfish."_

_He scoffed almost immediately, "I'm being selfish because I want you to stay with me?" she nodded in an instant, "That's anything but selfish, Casey, that's me showing you how much I care about you!"_

"_Do you not care?" she muttered and it was a bit of a two-sided argument. "Do you not care at all about what my opportunities are out there? This is for my future!"_

"_Which obviously doesn't have me in it…" he sighed with much exhaustion.  
_

"_It can have you in it!" she needed to convince him of that fact, "Derek, I've thought about a future with you in it. I _do_ want you in it. It's you that doesn't want me if I leave."_

"_If you leave, I'll worry." He admitted it to her and he really didn't want to admit it to her. He felt like some sort of a pathetic love-sick idiot that couldn't be without his girl. But for Derek, that's just how he felt and he needed her to know it. "I'd worry about those American guys who would want you. I mean how couldn't they..." His eyes scanned her face; this face that he had grown to love during this whole situation; that natural beauty that radiated even in the morning. "you're perfect." She smiled faintly at his compliment, "I'd be stuck here worrying, Casey. It's going to drive me crazy."_

"_I don't want other guys, Derek." She reached over and held his hand to convince him of her statements, "If you really want us then it's only going to be you. I promise it's only going to be you." She had it in her to snort, "You don't think I'd worry about you and other girls out here?"_

_Derek shook his head almost immediately with a small pathetic smile toward himself, "Not even drunk me wanted another girl, Case."_

"_Then what's the problem?" she cried out in frustration, "What's the problem?"_

"_The problem is I want you with me. I physically want you here with me. I don't want you out there alone." Derek shrugged and sighed, "Please just stay. Don't leave me." His voice more frantic now._

_Casey groaned aloud in frustration, "Stop!" she demanded, "I'm sorry but this time..." she looked down and let a second of silence pass followed by bringing her eyes to see his once more, "Derek isn't going to get what he wants. For the first time, Derek _isn't_ going to win." He immediately got off the bed in what seemed like an angry manner. She rolled her eyes at his childish ways and grew really annoyed with him. She thought that this would change but this in front of her was the same shit that always happened. A fight or an argument and it always led them to be angry. She really didn't want to be angry anymore…it was too tiring. "Derek, what are you doing?" she exasperated. _

"_I'm letting you go, Casey. I'm letting you leave..." he mocked. _

_Casey copied his actions, getting off the bed herself, "So you're not going to go to the airport? You're not going to see me off?" there was a slight cry in her voice as he shrugged like an immature child to reply. That slight cry quickly became a cry of anger and annoyance. "So really you're going to act like this on my last morning here because I won't stay? After I already told you I was going to leave. After _you_ even told me that you're going to be okay with me leaving…" her eyes grew narrow as she spoke. "De-rek!" she called out to him. _

"_What?!" he buttoned his jeans and put his shirt on over his head, "I'm going to let you go, Casey. I want you to stay and it's obvious I can't make you do that. I can't handle being with you if you're not here with me. I just can't do it. I want you so damn bad!" he cried out, "But if I can't have you here then I'm not going to be able to have you there. I know I won't be able to, Casey. I won't be able to handle it. We'll both just hurt even more." He went over to her and wiped the angry tear that fell from his words, "Maybe I'm being selfish…" he murmured close to her face as he gently cupped it once more, "but it's only because I want to be with you."_

"_I don't understand why you're doing this to me, Derek." She sniffled lightly in front of him, "Why can't you just be simple? Why must you complicate things?"_

"_Because Casey," he said in all honesty, "we _are_ a complication." _

_And at that moment, Casey knew he was right. Right again was this Derek Venturi. They were a complication. From the beginning they were a complication. Being put into a blended household was a complication because they never got along. Their relationship in college was a complication because he tortured her to no end. They were step-siblings and what about that fact _isn't_ a complication. Their marriage was a complication because it was a mistake that lead to love that lead to heartbreak and divorce._

_Now here they were. Within a week, they had a chance and they had a goodbye. Neither was easy because it was just another one of those complications that plagued them. Now the rational and reasonable nature that was Casey McDonald had to agree with him because he was right._

"_We are, aren't we?" she stifled a sad laugh, "We will never work."_

_As much as it pained Derek to hear those words, he had to agree with her. Being together for those two short months were the greatest two months of his life but that didn't last too long. Perfection just didn't last long. They had another chance again but thinking and withholding information got in the way. They had a night and it was that perfection that they were so used to but yet again, it couldn't even last till the morning. Their relationship would never work because there was Casey who over-thought every detail to every situation. Then there was him who never thought; just did. They clashed together and apart and it wasn't ever going to work. And it killed him. It killed Derek to know it would never work between them because he loved her. He loved her so much that it drove him crazy to just be away from her. He really didn't want to hurt anymore and he didn't want to hurt Casey anymore either. _

_Derek shook his head sadly, stifling his own laugh, "We never will." His body went through physical pain as he looked at her face. The tears streaming down while she had a sad smile on to help assure herself that it was okay. He knew she wasn't okay because he wasn't either. "Come here…" he brought her in his arms as she cried into his shoulder, "Shh…don't cry." He placed a tiny kiss on her head, "You are the most difficult person I have ever met…" she let out mumbled laughs onto his shoulder, "But you know you'll always be my favorite kind of difficult."_

_She pulled back, "And you'll always be my favorite son of a bitch." Casey sighed, "So this is really it, Derek?" _

"_Is it ever really it?" he managed a smirk to which he received a hit on his shoulder, "I'm kidding, Case." He brought his hands up on either side of her and boy how he loved doing that. "Casey," he sighed and pulled her in for one more kiss. Her arms made its way up to where it loved to rest gently as he softly caressed her strands of hair; his thumbs slowly swayed side to side. It was that actual goodbye kiss that he quickly ended to pull her in for a tight embracing hug. "Bye, Casey."_

"_Bye, Derek." _

_He gave her a quick kiss on the head and pulled back to let her go. Grabbing his jacket, he opened Casey's door that brought along three female bodies to fall in front of them. Gina, Emily, and the newbie Lindsay, nonchalantly picked themselves up off the floor and wiped their mini tears. _

"_H-hey, you two!" Emily sniffled._

"_Yeah, fancy seeing you here…" Gina continued. _

"_I was tempted to join…" Lindsay said nervously._

_Derek and Casey both shook their heads with embarrassment for their friends. "I can't believe you two are rotting Lindsay's mind with your craziness." Casey scolded Gina and Emily. "Apologize."_

_Emily and Gina looked over at Lindsay. "Sorry, Lindsay," they blankly said in unison._

_Derek waved long drawn out goodbye to Casey and quickly left the apartment. _

_Emily, Gina, and Lindsay were fast to come up and give Casey a comforting hug. "Alright, guys. I'm okay, really." She assured them through a sad smile and she had to learn to get over this. "Let's get me to that airport."_

- - - -

She sat there; eyes still gazing around her terminal. There was a romantic part of her that slowly awaited a surprise of some sort; an interruption of some kind; a stopping of her departure; a Wicker Park ending. Oh, that ending that was probably one of the most perfect endings of a movie. She wanted that romance and that love but she didn't think she was getting it. All she could do was hope. It was a little bit of hope and a little bit of crazy that ran through her at the moment.

She looked to her left and saw a sea of people and a part of her drew Derek as a face that walked toward her direction. As that person would get closer, the dream was ruined; it wasn't Derek. It was some tall man with a business suit on; cell phone in hand. She looked over to her right and saw the magazine stores and food stands. The man eating a big slice of pizza had short reddish-brown hair and he ate like a pig. A few more minutes of a temporary hallucination soon faded as the man became a short bald guy eating tiny bites of his slice.

She felt stupid for wanting to hope it because it was farfetched and she couldn't even begin to ponder what she would do if he begged her to stay again. "Boarding Flight 1225 to New York City…"

Casey sighed and soon enough she had come to terms that she wasn't going to get that romantic ending. It wasn't in the cards for her because what they were, revolved around that "word." She picked her traveling bag up and got in line to board. Taking another look around the terminal, she looked for a face; that face coming to stop her from getting on this plane. "Ma'am? Ma'am?" the airline worker waved a hand in front of her, "You're holding up the line." Casey snapped out of her trance and stared at the impatient lady, "I _need_ your boarding pass."

Wrinkling her nose, Casey grabbed her boarding pass and handed it to the lady. She slowly paced across that door and she was finally assured that she was going to New York. "Dammit."

--

There he was on his bed; hands behind his head as he stared up at his ceiling. He brought his hand up and looked over at his wrist watch and he knew Casey was on that flight already. Any irrational thoughts about going to stop her, was gone because he didn't budge from his bed. For the past hour and a half, he got up numerous times and paced around his room with thoughts of grabbing his keys to get her. But he couldn't do it. She wanted to leave and she really needed this. This was her future. New York was her future and he wasn't going to take that away from her, no. He couldn't be that selfish even though he still wanted her. Those stupid complications that he brought up were just a bunch of meaningless words because they were complications that he loved. He loved the challenge of how difficult she was and he loved the challenge of overcoming the complications. He was Derek Venturi and no rule applied to him. Complications wouldn't get in his way. He felt like smacking himself for bringing things up when he knew for sure he'd regret them. It happened quite often with Casey and earlier that morning was no different.

"No matter where I am…" he repeated her words in a quiet whisper to himself. Those twelve words that still gave him hope, "there's _always_ going to be a chance." A smirk graced his lips as an impulse ran through his mind. It was one that was crazy. He'd really outdone himself with this thought but he wanted to do it. He was going to do it.

--

Casey looked past her passenger neighbors and out the window. She'd see Toronto again and she'd certainly see all the people she cared about again…so why was it so hard? It was hard because the person she was leaving behind would never work out? She groaned in thought of that cursed word. She hated that stupid word. It crawled its way up to number one on her list of "The stupidest words to exist…EVER!" Yeah, she definitely hated it. So what if they were a complication? What couple isn't one? Sam and Gina were a major complication with their constant fights but they loved one another at the end of the day and they worked hard to overcome those fights. Now they had their biggest challenge to date. It wasn't any stupid fights about flirting with strangers or fights about whether or not real men get pedicures; it was a baby. It was two people in love that were starting a family. What more complication is that? And the great thing about it was they were happy. They were very happy people when the fights died down and the joking subsided. They were happy and if two people like that can overcome the complications then why couldn't she and Derek?

Sadly, she knew what the answer was. It was all those things that Derek accused of her. Those stupid idiotic accusations that plagued her mind ever since they fell from his mouth. That she was always going to look for something to ruin them. That she was going to wait for him to do something stupid again and end what they had just like that. It hurt because it was sort of true. She tended to overreact quickly and she'd regret the things that happened. Derek tended to do some of the most stupid things and she tended to get angry over it. She knew that there would be one day when enough was enough and that's when it would end. She would end it. The things he said were true that night and he called her on her bullshit. He was right and he had her down to a tee. She felt horrible about it because Derek didn't deserve that. All Derek did was want this relationship with her and he even thought about a future with her. And all she did was think about how things would turn out or how they might not work out.

And that was the reason why they were a complication. She was her and he was him.

She was at 12,000 ft. and climbing. Flying her way to New York, it sucked horribly because she really loved him and she never got to tell him. A part of her kind of withheld it because what good would it do to tell him and leave him? Not good because the poor guy was upset that she was already leaving. His constant need to convince her to stay, bringing up reasons where leaving him wasn't a good thing. Her constant need to remind she had to go. It was a tough morning and an emotional one at that. But there was nothing she could do about it now. In an hour and a half, she'd be in New York, where she chose to be because she wanted to think about her future. Maybe one day she'd learn to change for him like he did for her. Maybe it would happen and maybe it wouldn't. Maybe Derek would find someone new and maybe he couldn't. She hoped it would be the latter.

A slight smile graced her lips as she sat back comfortably in her seat. Thinking about the maybes and thinking about the future. And she always thought about the future. There was still a little hope in her as she recalled things Derek said to her. But it was just hope and it was just something that would have to play out.

"Is it ever really it?" she quietly repeated his words to herself. She sighed, "We'll just have to wait and see."

--

"Head feeling better?"

"Yup."

"Good because I'm not trying to play nurse to you all day. Emily and I are having dinner with Lindsay tonight."

"Replacing Casey already?" Sam raised an eyebrow.

"No!" Gina groaned, "No one is going to replace Casey. Ever. Emily and I just realized that Lindsay could be a good friend to have tag along…"

"And maybe get some goodies because the girl is an actress…" Gina's nose wrinkled almost immediately. "See…" he gave her a quick kiss on the head, "I know exactly how you operate."

"Sam, shut up." Gina yawned out as her head rested on his chest; legs sprawled across his thighs as they sat on the couch. She began to just sit and realize the changes that were occurring in their lives. "We're such grown-ups now, baby."

His hand sat happily on his girlfriend's stomach, "Yeah, we are…" he chuckled lightly, "We have a_ lot _of crap to do now." Sam gave her another quick kiss on her head, "First things first. We have to tell our parents."

"Oh," Gina tensed against him, "Flubberduckies…"

Sam continued his light chuckling as he held her tighter, "Baby, we're gonna be okay. We'll be fine. My parents love you and your parents love me…" he got silent as his nose wrinkled in thought, "r-right?"

Gina lifted her head to laugh, nodding to assure him, "They love you." She sighed and brought her head back onto her boyfriend's chest, "Since our little fetus is coming, we need to find a new place. Somewhere not too far from work and somewhere not too far from here because I don't want Derek to be all by his itty bitty self--"

"Who are you calling itty bitty?" Derek finally came out of his room that day and it was shock and surprise on the faces of his roommates that made him laugh.

This slightly joking manner was the last thing they expected from him because the love of his life just moved away. "You seem…" Gina tried to think of the right word, "chipper?" she looked at Sam who nodded, "Yeah," bringing her attention back over at Derek, "chipper."

"I'm fine." He assured them and after he drew up the newest impulse in him, he _was_ just dandy. "So what are you two talking about now?"

"We were thinking of finding a new place?" Sam admitted with a slight hint of reluctance because he and Gina weren't too sure on how he was going to react to this. His ex-wife left him and now his two roommates were expecting and leaving him alone in the apartment they shared. They were a bit scared that this guy might actually go crazy.

"No need." Derek told them with a smile.

Gina sat up and raised an eyebrow. "No need?" she snorted, "We _have_ to find a new place, Derek. The baby is going to need spa--"

"No, Gina." Derek waved a hand and shook his head, "You two stay here." Sam and Gina were still massively confused, "The baby can take my room because I'm moving out."

"Moving out to where?" Sam and Gina asked in unison.

"New York."


	23. A Session with My Ex

**AN: So this is the last chapter of my story. A LONG last chapter.  
**

**I wanna give a quick thanks to all of you who stuck by me and managed to get through the torture that was my weird sense of humor. hah.  
**

**You guys are completely amazing. I can't say it enough. :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own a thing. **

* * *

She was sitting through another day alone at her new home. A home that she was slowly getting used to; there was always food in her fridge now; there was more space; there was a bigger TV; there was a lot of silence. Her Dad was still that same work-a-holic and it would never change. He didn't change for her Mother and it wouldn't change for her either. But that was okay. She kind of liked the peace and quiet but she missed her two girlfriends. She missed them physically but she pretty much talked to them every day since she came to New York. She could only thank her Dad for having free long distance on the phone.

- - - -

_Casey arrived in New York for her first time ever and seeing the sea of people was overwhelming. She was excited but at the same time she was still pretty bummed with what happened between she and Derek and it kinda radiated off of her. _

_Dennis could tell something was up and he kind of knew it had something to do with Derek. Nora had told him about Casey's mishap in Vegas and how it ended in divorce and he kind of sympathized for his daughter. He sort of had a slight feeling that because she was heartbroken, that it was the only reason she moved out here. But she was here with him and Dennis was going to try his hardest to make his daughter feel at home here in New York. He just wanted her to be happy._

_After lunch and a stroll around her new neighborhood, she finally got settled. She had to gasp at how crazy big the room was. With its lavender colored walls; as if it were already made for her. She smiled and realized things could only get better. _

"_Hey Sweetheart, I'm gonna get some rest now. We have a big case going on." He gave his daughter a kiss on the head. "I'm so glad you're here. And cheer up, okay? Things will get brighter. I promise."_

"_I hope so." Casey smiled sincerely at her Father. "But I'm really glad I'm out here, Dad. Goodnight."_

"_Night, Kiddo." _

_Casey unpacked most of her things and after an hour of organizing, she decided to finally take a break. Lying on her bed, she started to think about him again. She couldn't help it he just happened to fill a space in her head that seemingly felt permanent. There was a part of her that felt an itch to call him and just let him know she had arrived but her reasonable mind took over. It told her that they finally just ended things and she would look pathetic if she called him. She didn't want to be pathetic. So she would do the next best thing. "_Hey, Gina, I'm here now; safe and sound_."_

"Thank God. I was waiting for a call and then I went through a bunch of scenarios where you might've crashed or something._" She had hyper written all over her voice, "_Then my baby would be missing a Godmother. Man then I'd have to attend another fun--_"_

"Gina!_" Casey was a bit freaked out by her death scenarios, "_I'm alive and well. I don't think I'll be dying anytime soon…"_ she managed a small chuckle. _

"Good. Dying isn't good for my schedule right now._" She continued to joke. "_But Emily's on her way over. We're going to have dinner with Lindsay._"_

"Replacing me already?_" Casey asked with a slight smugness to her. _

"No!_" Gina whined and she was getting that all day long. "_We're never going to replace you I promise!_"_

"I'm kidding,_" Casey chuckled, "_Yeah, but I'm glad you guys are hanging out with her._"_

_Gina smirked to herself, "_I'm glad too…_"_

_Casey settled herself and decided to just ask, "_So how's Derek doing?_"_

_Gina hummed in thought, "_He's actually doing pretty good, Casey._" For some very wrong reason within herself, Casey kind of hoped he was miserable but much to her surprise, he was okay. Immediately the sound of Gina's voice became that wonderful much too annoying teasing one, "_You regret everything that you two talked about in the morning, huh? It's okay, Casey, you can admit it to me._"_

"Let's not get too ahead of ourselves, Gina."_ Casey started, "_We had that talk for a reason and I'm not going to cave in and cry about him._" That was a bold statement because she cried on the plane. "_And it's obvious he's doing just fine too._" Casey sighed in admittance, "_I guess I just miss him already. That's all._"_

_Gina snorted almost immediately, "_That's because you two did the dirty before you left. Did you guys use protection? Is my child going to have a playmate—ow!_" Casey raised an eyebrow at Gina's outburst. "_I'm kidding!_" she defended herself to someone other than Casey. "_Casey,_" she expressed blankly, "_I have to go. But we'll talk later, okay? Go call Emily now before she gets here—oh! And when you call her, make sure you tell her that you called me first!_" Gina teased."_Because _I'm_ more important!_"_

"Gina, I love you guys equally, okay?_"_

"Blah, blah…_"_

_Casey ignored her, "_Bye, Gina._"_

"Blah._" Gina hung up the phone and rubbed the shoulder that was pinched lightly. "Dammit! That really hurt, Derek."_

"_Sorry."_

"_Well," she stared at his intent nature, "she misses you already and because I told her you're fine, she put on some stupid façade about being okay too." Derek grinned. "So your plan is set."_

"_Saweet!"_

_Gina snorted toward him, "You better just hope the girl doesn't find some new guy before you get there to surprise her with everything. I mean," she chuckled to herself, "wouldn't it be something if Casey fell in love with some American guy. Then you'd fall flat on your ass with this whole moving to New York thing. Then you'd have to move back here and be all miserab--" Derek glowered as she spoke every word and he turned red at the thought of Casey being with some other guy. "Fine, Derek," Gina sighed, "If it helps, I'll give you weekly summaries and I'll even use my very persuasive ways to get her to stay single. I'll even tell Emily." Derek got up and went over to her, hugging her tightly. "Ow! Derek! Not too hard. I have a little fetus growing in me."_

"_Oh," he pulled back and gave her an apologetic smile, "right."_

- - - -

It had been almost two months since coming here and she didn't expect things to be so hard now. School was very difficult, being in a new environment was extremely difficult, and being alone was pretty difficult. Work was pretty hectic with all the running around she had to do but she enjoyed it. It was something she needed to be comfortable around. She knew it was too late to cave and run back home. But there was still that strong part of her that knew she could handle this and she wasn't going to be so scared. This was the reason why she came to New York other than school and work. She was trying to become a new person because she was an adult already. She had to face the real world and she was.

The guys around here were much too different than the ones in Toronto. They were forward with what they thought about you and they told you straight up how they felt. It was odd to Casey. There was no chase and most of the guys were assholes. Dating was the last thing on her mind because they weren't that certain guy that she still had in her mind even almost two months into her move. Gina and Emily told her it was too soon for something like that. And she knew it was. Casey didn't always listen to her girlfriends' advice but this time she _wanted_ to.

Studying quietly in her new living room, she went over the newest topic of discussion in her very challenging classes. "Psychological Basis of Behavior…" she sighed, "Kiss my ass." She decided it was time for a break. Closing her big textbook, Casey got comfortable on the couch and turned the TV on to get her mind off of things.

"_Where does depression hurt?" _came that cursed commercial.

"Everywhere…" Casey answered it.

_Who does depression hurt?" _

"Everyone…"

"_Cymbalta can help_…"

Casey grabbed her pen and notepad and wrote, "Casey, once you get your clinical license... prescribe yourself some Cymbal--" she would be interrupted in her small depressed act as the sounding of door-knocking rang her ears. "I swear," she got up and huffed over to the front door, "if it's that creep from the 7th floor trying to--" she opened it and much to her surprise it wasn't the creep from the 7th floor. It was the last person she should've been seeing there standing at her door; better yet, seeing period. But it was someone she could honestly say she missed and has missed. "Wh-what are you doing here, Der--"

He waved a hand to get her to stop talking and she did. The next thing she saw was him bringing out his hand for him to introduce himself and she had nothing but confusion hit her face. "Hi. I'm Derek Venturi. I don't think we've met before." Derek Venturi brought his hand over to the frozen girl's and shook it himself. "I need to see a Casey McDonald?" she blinked at him, "I really, really, need to talk to her."

"What are you do--"

He interrupted her and rose his voice a little bit louder, "It's _really_ important that I speak with her."

Casey's face was scrunched up in a ball of confusion and thought she went a bit crazy for a second. But he really was there and he was really saying the things he was saying. She could do nothing but play along like an idiot, "Oh, okay, come in." He came in and sat on her couch, while she took a seat back on her single chair. She was still completely perplexed by this and any confusion she felt when she saw him was immediately erased because all she saw was crazy.

"You're Casey McDonald right?" she nodded slowly; not quite sure what his game is. "So I happen to know that you're in the field of that crap where you listen to people's problems or whatever. And I_ really_ need someone to talk to about the issues I'm having."

Casey couldn't help but let out a tiny laugh. Derek having issues _always_ made her laugh. "So what are these_ 'issues_' you're having?"

Derek sat up straighter and scooted to the edge of the couch to get closer to her. "Okay, see, I just recently got divorced, alright," Casey's heart started to beat faster and her body started to grow tense. She had gone through a mix of confusion, crazy, and nervousness in the matter of minutes. "And I kinda messed it up with her."

"Re-really?" she fumbled her words a bit at the start of his speech. She quickly realized she could actually get some info out of this. "You wanna tell me about it?"

He took a deep breath and started, bringing his focus to look down and not at her, "It was a drunken mistake of a marriage and we started to become close. Yeah, we were never really close before but for some reason this marriage brought us a lot closer when it shouldn't have. Then things started to happen and I started to feel something for her, you know?" he brought his eyes back to stare directly at hers as she nodded slowly for him to continue, "Yeah. I really had it bad. And the best part about it was that she felt something for me too. It took her forever," he chuckled, "but she did admit it."

"Uh-huh…"

"We had some issues we had to deal with in our marriage," he continued, "Whether we wanted to stay married or divorce and we handled it in the most childish of ways. We argued and fought then I went and tried to do something to end it quickly." He shrugged, "See, I've come to realize that I do things without thinking." She snorted a bit loud and he jokingly glared at her as he went on. "I have an impulse and I go with it. I don't think about the consequences and who they could hurt. Usually, I just think about me and if I'm not hurt then things should be fine. But I hurt her." He nodded slowly in remembrance, "I hurt her because I kept things from her that I shouldn't have. And God, it sucks to hurt her." Letting out a deep breath, "Then she told me she couldn't trust me and it hurt pretty bad to hear because I know she could. It was a stupid choice and she wanted to know why I did it. I didn't know but I had some time to think and I know now."

"Wh-why did you keep things from her?" she stammered a bit nervous.

Derek took another deep breath and stared directly into her eyes, "I think because I wanted her to find out on her own." Her eyebrows immediately arched as a reflex, continuing, "I didn't want her to find out about the wedding being her fault but about the things we said to one another. And trust me I didn't know right off the bat. There were all these times where she looked at me funny because I was so calm at the most random hours of the day and that's when it started to hit me. It was completely crazy, all those things we did. So after that, I started to slowly go over everything that happened that night and at the same time I would be around her." He shrugged and brought his focus to the floor, feeling slightly embarrassed by all this talking he's doing. And he was never one for talking. "And I just felt like being around her. All the time, I just felt the need to have her around me. Whether it be annoying her at her apartment or stalking her from a night out," he chuckled lightly in thought of those good times, "I needed her around me."

Casey felt blood rushing to her cheeks as she blushed at his words and she hasn't blushed around him in what felt like forever. "O-oh yeah?" she nervously replied.

"Yep," he nodded and looked back up at her, "I told myself that those things that she and I had done in Vegas were crazy; that they were meaningless words we spoke in a drunken state." His voice was full of exhilaration as he continued, "Then I found myself feeling all these things and it was all because of that night. Sure we were drunk but I remembered it and I remember all the things we said to one another. All those 'I love you's' we said," he stifled a laugh, "Even though we were drunk, I meant them." Casey felt her breathing becoming more erratic. "I meant each one of them and it just took me forever to realize it." He nodded slowly, wanting to avoid her eyes, "And I guess that's exactly the reason why I wanted her to find out on her own. I wanted her to realize that she meant those things to me too. I didn't want her to hear it from my mouth because I would never know if she said it to pity me or if she really meant it. So I never told her. I just waited patiently for her to know what happened between us. I wanted her to love me and know all on her own that she did."

Her eyes grew watery at his words and that was a pretty damned good excuse for doing what he did. "Is that s-so?" she sniffled lightly.

"No doubt," he sighed in continuing, "Then I did it again after we had another chance. I did it again and she feels like she can't trust me. I want her to trust me because I didn't deceive her on purpose. I didn't and I swear if I could have another chance with her that I'd never do it again. I would never."

His voice was full of sincerity and she knew he really meant it. "Did you tell her that?" She was really getting practice at this psychologist thing.

Derek gave her a half smile at her slight attempt to speak to him, "I didn't get a chance because she moved away. It's been over a month since I've seen her and I miss her like crazy. It's like every time we're apart, I'm not myself. And I know I just really need her in my life. I really _just_ need her in my life. I really miss her, you know?"

She nodded slowly and sat hesitant to talk, "D-does she feel the same way?" Casey slowly brought her finger up to wipe the lone happy tear.

"Hmm…" his nose wrinkled in thought, "See _that_ I don't know. I have no idea how she feels about me now. We spoke about how our relationship might never work and it sucked. And let me tell you, it didn't take me long to realize that it could. That our relationship could work but she left and I never got to tell her how much I still wanted her. That I still needed her in my life and I was willing to make it work with her. No matter what it took."

- - - -

_Derek was having a hectic few weeks. He wanted to surprise her and he knew that if all went well, Casey would be ecstatic about everything; even imagined the look on her face when he'd tell her. There was a part of him that wanted to just hurry and go to New York and tell her he loves her and that he wants to be there with her; that he was willing to move to be with her but he thought he'd take care of all the basics first. He put his usual impulsive mind to rest for a minute and decided to actually work all this out for them; that things would be all set and perfect._

_But perfect was all imaginary since the past few weeks he'd been searching for the perfect apartment for them. Derek Venturi was actually looking for an apartment in New York and that's how much he cared about her. He knew she was staying with her Dad and if he was going to move there, he wasn't going to stay at her Dad's home. He wanted a place for them. Something nice, something kind of spacious and something absolutely in his price range. All he's found so far was small crappy apartments that were the size of his current room or one's that were completely overpriced. It was ticking him off and he was getting annoyed at how long this was taking. He wanted to see Casey already and he knew she wasn't going to wait forever for him and she'd probably end up finding some hot American dude. He cringed at the thought of it and it only made him want to search more. Derek was still enlisting in Gina and Emily's help with the whole keeping Casey single while he found a place to move out plan. Living with Gina, he knew she was getting annoyed with this whole secrecy fiasco but Derek knew she kinda thought the plan was romantic, so she kept at it. But this was Gina and the girl tended to drive him bonkers day in and day out._

"_Derek, could I actually use my laptop for once?" Gina annoyingly tapped her foot as her arms crossed at him. "I need to check my FaceSpace."_

_He took his eyes off the screen to blankly stare at the girl, "What the hell is a FaceSpace?" _

"_It's a quicker word for both FaceBook and MySpace." _

"_Stupid…" he blankly teased her._

"_FaceSpace now!!"_

"_Gina," he groaned, "I'm still trying to look for a place." He was getting frustrated and Gina could tell but checking her FaceSpace seemed more important at the moment. "Just wait."_

"_I can't wait!" she yelped, "I want to post some bulletins and tell all my friends that I'm expecting," she grinned proudly."Then I can get presents!"_

"_What friends?" Derek snorted at her; eyes still focused on the apartment listings. "We all know you're pregnant. Calm down."_

"_I have friends!" she defended herself as a pout washed on her features, "I have friends other than you guy--" her cell phone went off and her eyes narrowed with a smug smile, "See. I have friends. My other friends call me, Der--" she grabbed her phone and saw Casey's number. "Dammit."_

_Derek just couldn't help but laugh, "So which one is it? Sam? Emily? Maybe Lindsay? How about Casey? Or is it even me?" he kept laughing at her as he scrolled down through the New York listings. "Stupid New York," he muttered quietly to himself. _

_She glared daggers at him and brought her cell to her ear, "_Hi, Casey._" Derek sat up and stared as Gina spoke to the woman he couldn't wait to see. He also needed to be sure she was still off the market._

"Hey, Gina, how's the belly?_"_

"Just dandy_," Gina rolled her eyes as Derek watched her intently, waiting for some sort of okay; that things were still normal. "_So what are you up to?_"_

"I'm on my break. I'm about to go grab some lunch with a co-worker_."_

_Gina was evil and she had it in her to mess with Derek right now. "_Co-worker, huh?_" she swore she saw Derek's face pale at the words, "_Is he cute?_"_

_Casey laughed pathetically toward herself, "_She's a girl co-worker. I'm still not ready to go guy hunting, Gina. Please." _She chided_. "Derek is still driving me nuts even from all the way over there._"_

"Uh-huh…_" Gina smirked to herself to make Derek even more terrified. "_That's good to know._"_

"Yeah, so I was just checking in. I tried to call Emily but she was busy…if ya know what I mean."_ Casey and Gina busted out into laughter, "_Well, tell everyone hey for me. Stay away from those chips, Gina, I mean it. Love you. Bye_." _

_Casey hung up and Derek was still watching Gina intently. She was tempted to drive him nuts and she was going to. He had already given her a nickname and she was going to live up to it. She was The Evil Hormone. "_Oh yeah, you like him a lot?_" Derek's face was pale no more. Instead it was red with anger as the words spilled from her mouth. "_He plays hockey?! What! That's crazy._" Gina continued this act and it was really pissing him off because it was really believable, "_So he's hot, huh? I knew it! Yeah, well sweetie. That's great. I'm glad you're finally moving on. Uh-huh…_" Gina bit her lip to contain the laughter that was building up inside of her, "_Alright. Have fun on your lunch date. Bye. Yes, yes, no more chips. I promise. Love you too._" She hung up her cell phone and nonchalantly dropped on the couch as if nothing happened. _

_Derek's breathing shortened at his friend as he stood in front of her. "What the hell was that?!" he cried out, "She's seeing someone?!" Gina shrugged. "What happened to you're going to persuade her to stay single?!" _

"_O-oops…" she held her laughter in again as she watched him freak out. The next thing she saw was Derek grabbing his cell-phone, "Wh-what are you doing?" she stammered and had a feeling he was going to call Casey; that her joking was going too far._

"_I'm calling her." Gina stood up to stop him but Derek already had the phone to his ear. "She's not supposed to—_Casey!_" Gina wrinkled her nose and dropped back on the couch to see what could possibly happen. She was a bit intrigued to say the least. _

"Derek?_" she answered nervously and he was the last person she'd expect to call her. "_Wha--_"_

"Who's this guy?! You're seeing some guy already?!_" he practically yelled in frustration. "_Who is he?!_"_

"What are you talking about? I'm not seeing some guy?_" she sounded just as confused as ever._

"Casey, I'm not stupid. You don't have to hide it from me, okay?_" he expressed with a mix of anger and sadness, "_I ju--_"_

"Derek!_" Casey said a bit loud to interrupt him, "_I'm not seeing anyone. I hardly even talk to any guys out here. I promise."

_Her tone of voice was much too convincing and for her to actually promise made it seem as if she was for real. A part of him felt a bit elated at the fact that he was still on her mind. "_But, Gi--_" his eyebrows furrowed as he brought his focus over to the in-hysterics woman on the couch and immediately he knew he was played. "_I-I was just kidding!_" he put on a joking act to persuade her over the phone. "_I just wanted to see how you were and decided to play a little joke on you._" He laughed nervously, "_So how are you? Great? Just fine? That's awesome. Me too. So I should get going. Don't talk to other guys, okay? Ha-ha. Alright bye_." _

_Derek hung up on her while she couldn't even get two words in. "Weird."_

"_Who was that?" her co-worker asked._

"_Ex-husband…"_

_The co-worker had it in her to tease her new colleague, "Sounds like someone still loves ya if he's getting all jealous like that."_

"_One could only hope…"_

_--_

_Derek let out a much needed breath as his eyes narrowed angrily at the pregnant brunette on the couch, "I can't believe you just did that."_

"_Yeah," she coughed out in laughter, "and you all made it seem like Sam was the jealous freak." Gina smirked at him, "I'll tell you now, Derek Venturi, you mess with me and I'll mess with you right back."_

"_You're good," he nodded slowly toward her, "You're _real_ good." He walked over to the computer desk that sat in their living room, dropping in his chair pathetically, "But since you nearly screwed me over, you're off Casey-call duty. Emily's on full-time." Gina wrinkled her nose at her demotion, "And not only that, but you're not getting any laptop privileges--"_

_Her eyebrows furrowed at him, "But it's my laptop, though."_

"_So!" he pulled up a chair, setting it next him, "Now you're gonna sit and you're going to help me find the perfect apartment where my future wife and I will reside in the later days. Come on." He patted the seat, "Come sit next to Godfather Derek."_

_Dragging her feet over to him, she dropped in the chair, "Fine." Gina let out a scoff, "But my child is _not_ calling you Godfather Derek."_

"_Oh yes, the little fetus will."_

- - - -

"Is that so?" she felt herself sweating at his words.

"Yup," Derek nodded, "I brought up some stupid thing about how we won't work because we're complicated." He shrugged, "And it was stupid because who isn't complicated, right?" a scoff was let out, "I mean no couple is perfect but what we had was pretty damn close to perfect." Casey let out a tiny smile at his words. "And I regret bringing up that stupid BS. Seems like a lot of the things I do are stupid." He stifled a pathetic laugh, "She just loved calling me a stupid son of a bitch."

"You know," she felt a bit terrible for him saying that. Her heart tugged a bit at his tone of voice and it seemed as if he kind of was hurt by all the times she's called him that before; whether it was playful or not. "I'm pretty sure she overreacted toward the situation or the problem. Everyone says things they don't mean when they are angry or if the situation is a negative one. I'm almost positive she doesn't think you're stupid."

Derek had a small smirk creep up on the side of his lips, "You think so?"

"Yeah," Casey nodded and tried to hide her own small smile from him, "it's a common fact. It also brings on a lot of regret after the situation has passed."

"So what should I do?" he sat up straighter and brought himself closer to the edge of the couch again, "What _can_ I do about this situation I'm in?"

"D-do you still love her?" she stammered nervously as she asked him.

"Never stopped," he told her with complete confidence because it was the truth after all. "It's just hard," he wrinkled his nose as he thought, "It's just hard to figure out how she feels about me now. After everything that's gone on. The stupidity, the lies, the mistrust, the fighting; it's pretty hard for me to read her. It's also really hard to figure it out when she lives in another country."

Casey took a deep breath and decided to give him some much needed advice; advice that pertained mainly to her. "So why don't you just come clean and tell her everything that you've been feeling." He looked a bit nervous by that suggestion. "It wouldn't just hurt to try, right?" Derek shrugged lightly to himself and Casey knew he wasn't going to get straight with her or else they wouldn't be having this session. "Okay," she sighed lightly and brought herself to sit at the edge of her seat to get a little closer to him, "if your ex-wife were me, what would you tell her?"

Derek couldn't hold that grin that had been hiding in him somewhere. She gave him an opening and he wasn't going to fail at it. Taking a seat on the glass coffee table, he settled himself in front of her. His brown eyes directly meeting her blue ones.

"I love you." Was the first thing he needed to tell her and he saw her nose start to get even more red than it was, "I still love you and this stupid complication that I brought up when I last saw you?" he shook his head, "That's all it was: stupid. I miss you. I miss you and your mini freak-outs; your angry tirades when you get all pissed at me," he smirked, "but deep down you can't wait for me to apologize and make it up to you. I miss you sleeping next to me because those were the best nights of sleep I have _ever_ gotten. And I mean that in the most un-perverted way." She coughed out a laugh as she sniffled lightly. "And even though you drool, I don't really worry about it because it just helps me actually do my laundry. That way I'm actually clean and you don't have to complain about how dirty I am." Casey continued with her light laughter but quickly settled it as he got more serious, "I want to say sorry for keeping all those things from you. I didn't mean to do it. You know me, I never use my brain. I don't think. I just do. I have an impulse and I go with it. I'd never do that to you again. I promise I won't." Bringing his attention to the ground, he nodded to himself, "That day you left me, I had the biggest impulse to date." Casey's eyebrows furrowed in confusion to which his eyes were brought his back to hers, "Right after you left, I had the idea to come here to New York to be with you."

"Yo-you what?" she choked out.

"Yeah, funny thing about this impulse though, was I used my brain." He nodded slowly and pointed to his head, "I used my brain and I didn't just come here after I came up with the idea. I let it fester crazily in my brain for a few hours and I realized if I'm going to do this, I'm going to go all out." He brought his mock smug act, "Because that's how Derek Venturi rolls." Casey couldn't help but laugh at his cockiness, "So I spent the last month and a half searching for an apartment here; for work even. And I found both. I got us an apartment and I got a job so I could pay for the place." Kneeling in front her to be leveled, he reached over. Slowly, he brought his hand up to touch the side of her face and it felt amazing to do it again. Softly, he whispered, "I did all these things for you." Gently swaying his thumb underneath her eye as the tears fell, he continued, "Because I love you, Case."

"I love you too." She sniffled lightly, "I love you."

"Hey!" he grinned happily, "This is the first time we're actually saying it to one another!"

Casey choked out a laugh as he wiped away more of her happy tears, "It is, isn't it?" Derek nodded as she brought her hands on either side of his face, sighing lightly, "So did you really get an apartment here or was that just a bunch of bullshit to make me swoon?" she had a bit of a smirk herself.

"I got us an apartment, Casey." He assured her, planting a kiss on the inside of her wrist, "It took me a while to find the perfect one but I found one. And I literally just got the stuff moved."

- - - -

"_Aw!" Gina cried happy tears at the sight of the apartment, "Just like how we saw it, Derek!"_

"_Wow," Emily was in awe the place, "It really is beautiful, Derek. Casey's gonna love it."_

_Derek smirked as he took a look around the newly furnished apartment. He could only hope that Casey was gonna love it. It was a mix of his and Casey's things. He'd brought over some of the stuff Casey left behind as well as his own things from his room. Of course he had to bring over his beloved recliner. It wouldn't be a Venturi home without one. _

_Everything was set and he'd done a terrific job at setting everything in its place. He knew if something was messed up that Casey would fix it herself because she was still that organized freak that he loved to make fun of. Now he couldn't wait to see her and see how she'd love everything here. _If_ she would love everything here and with how everything was swaying his way, he had a great feeling Casey would love it just as much as he did. "So you guys like it?" _

_Emily and Gina nodded. "We absolutely love it. It kind of reminds me of Monica's apartment in 'Friends' but a much compact version." Emily beamed in thought, "Aw, see! You and Casey are totally Ross and Rachel!"_

"_Totally!" Gina joined in as she looked out the window at the view of the backstreets, "Those two ended up together in the end."_

"_Well I'm hoping that it's just the beginning for us." Derek blushed with embarrassment at how soft he got when it came to Casey. _

"_Aw," Gimily teased him. "Is our little Derek Venturi becoming that super sweet love-sick puppy again?!" He wrinkled his nose at the girls and they wasted no time in approaching him with pinches to his cheeks. "Derek Venturi loves his ex-wifeeee…" they let out in that sing-song voice. _

"_Anyways…" he slapped their hands away to which they laughed at him some more. "I also just got a paid internship to be an assistant to a Video Producer." _

"_What the hell do they do?" Gina raised an annoyed eyebrow while Emily nudged her, "Sorry," Gina rolled her eyes and put on a proper voice, "What is it that they do, Derek?" her attention was brought back to Emily, "There is that better?" Emily nodded. _

"_Like I was saying…" Derek shook his head at The Evil Hormone, "I assist in capturing video, video editing, sound and lighting. I'll get a lot of experience in it and if I'm there long enough I'll be able to get up to that Video Producer Status." _

"_Oh!" Gina grinned in thought as she elbowed Emily, "Derek's gonna be famous! Then we can get into parties and screenings in New York! Oh! And we'll meet celebs here too!"_

_Emily was liking the thought of this once more. "And it won't seem like we're using him because we're already friends with him!"_

"_I mean we'd totally be using him…" Gina let out._

"_Yeah," Emily coughed out, "we totally would be."_

"_Hello?!" Derek raised his arms up in frustration. "I'm _standing_ right here?!"_

_Emily and Gina stopped their chattering. "Sorry." "Oops." _

"_In all seriousness though," Emily settled herself, "We're really happy for you, Derek."_

_Gina nodded along, "Yeah, it's like everything's working out." Her hormones went a bit crazy as she sniffled, "Like a good romantic comedy ending…" Without another word Emily and Gina gave him a group hug._

_Derek's nose wrinkled at the two, "Yeah, yeah. I love Casey. But you two girls are starting to make me feel like a pansy!" Emily and Gina rolled their eyes, "Where is Sam when you need him? Shlepper would even be better than the two of you estrogen pills." _

"_Shut up, Derek!" Gina smacked his shoulder to which he laughed, "Schleppy was with his parents and Sam couldn't go because he just got that new job--"_

"_Yeah," Derek snorted jokingly to mess with the poor girl, "That and he wanted to see his girlfriend on the side." Emily smacked him upside the head. "Ow! I'm just kidding!" he yelped as he rubbed his head. "You girls just seriously love abusing me…"_

"_Yeah," Gina laughed nervously not even retorting to Derek's abuse talk, "I know he's just kidding, Em. Sam would nev--" she cleared her throat and grabbed her cell-phone to dial as she went into Derek's bedroom. "SAM!"_

"_You're an evil, evil, boy, Derek Venturi." Emily narrowed her eyes at him, "The poor girl is hormonal and all you do is mess with her."_

"_Exactly," he grinned, "It's too easy."_

- - - -

"So you had everyone know about this?" he nodded, "So every time Emily or Gina would call me and ask about guys and dating and how it wasn't the right thing to do…that was because of thi—oh! And that time you called me and yelled about me seeing some guy that I wasn't?" Derek cringed in remembrance as he nodded. "Aw," she had that teasing face all ready for him, "you were so scared that I was gonna meet someone new out here, huh?"

"Terrified," he sighed in admittance.

"Aw," she teased again, resting gently her arms around his neck. Quickly, her nose became red and the sniffles started to flood again, "Why!" she smacked his shoulder, "why are you totally sweet, Derek Venturi?"

Bringing his face right in front of hers, he softly whispered, "Because for some insane reason, Casey, I'm crazy about you."

"Thank God…" she slowly brought her face in front of his; her lips hovering over his, "because I was _this_ close to going crazy over here." Without waiting a response, she brought her lips to meet his. The shivers were still there and the fluttering feelings were still intact but there was something different. All the stupid was gone and it was just them. It was just another one of those indescribable and perfect kisses.

Leaning her forehead on hers, he smirked, "Not such a shitty Psychologist after all…"

Casey gasped in excitement, "You said Psychologist!"

His face fell seriously, "Sorry, Psychiatrist."

Casey sighed.

--

"You know, Derek," Casey looked around their new apartment and Derek didn't see her express any excitement whatsoever…it kinda scared him. "This is the size of my Dad's living room…" she looked over a face-falling Derek, "But…" she walked over to him and brought herself in his arms as she hugged tightly, "I love this place because it's ours."

"Really?" he had that sort of reluctance in his voice. "Are you sure? Because I know this doesn't even compete with your Dad's place. But this was the nicest place that I could aff--"

She covered his mouth with her hand and it had been a while since she's done it. "I love it. I love this apartment and I don't care if my Dad's place was a palace. I don't care because having you around and having our own place beats a palace." A grin slowly appeared on her face, "Our own place, Derek. That means we can do whatever we want on our own time…"

He held her tighter as a smirk started to form on his lips, "I think you might be on to something…" he slowly started to nuzzle her neck, "We can do whatever we want…" as he planted kisses on her neck. He realized how perfect this moment was. Just the two of them and he was thinking about it. Thinking of his latest impulse and if it would be risky seeing that they just got together. But he didn't care. He was going to do it just like every other impulse he's thought of. Pulling back, he placed a sweet kiss on her lips, "So you know how much I love you, right?"

"Um…" Casey took a gander around the place as a chuckle was let out, "I'm pretty sure I do."

"So you can see that you mean everything to me," he held her tighter, "I know for sure that you do. Being away from you sucks and I hated it. Months ago I would have killed myself for saying this but," he looked down as he shrugged, bringing his eyes back to meet hers, "I really need you in my life."

"Dammit," Casey muttered as tears started to fall again, "Sorry," he chuckled lightly, wiping them gently for her. "I need you in my life too, Derek, I do."

"I do…" he sighed as he repeated the words, "Um, Casey?" he felt like a fumbling idiot, "You think about the future?"

She had it in her to blankly stare at him, "Do you know who you're talking to?"

"Yeah, yeah. So…" he smirked as his shoulder slightly shrugged, "am I in it?"

"You're in it," she assured him with confidence. "You better be in it after all this we just got ourselves into."

Derek couldn't help but roll his eyes as a small grin graced his lips. "So there was something I bought, right, and I never got to give it to you." Immediately he saw the confusion on her face. "I got it for you on my birthday, if that isn't ironic enough. But before I do this, I have to tell you," his face became much too serious. "I'm gonna quit being stupid because this is it. I promise this is it."

"Me too, Derek," she murmured in front of him. "Well," she shrugged lightly in thought, "the occasional stupid is allowed because we both know that's who we are."

Derek nodded in agreement, "Totally true. Well come here…" he held her hand and led her to their new bedroom where Derek reached into his dresser and took out the black box. Holding it in his hand, he brought his full attention to her, "I love you, Case." Casey caught sight of that black box and her breathing started to become more erratic at the thought of it; eyes started to well up. "It was just another impulse but that day I knew for sure that it was all you. Just like now. I know we just got back together and I'm risking it but I know for sure it's you." He wanted to assure her using those same questions she asked him that one morning, during a fight, "I'm so sure that at my age I'm ready to settle down and stay with you. That it's going to be you forever. It has to be you forever." He got down on that cliché knee, "I know this isn't some romantic setting or anything but I always loved when it was just the two of us."

"Me too," she sniffled, "Just us." He opened up that little black box and it revealed that familiar old wedding ring that she grew used to wearing. That wedding ring she had gotten from the Minister in Vegas. "Oh..." her voice slightly upbeat, hinting a bit of disappointment, "It's be-beautiful, Derek. Ju-just what I wanted." She nodded to herself as she laughed nervously, "Lo-looks exactly like my old one, heh-heh…"

His face fell at her tone. "You don't like it."

"No!" she stared down at him, offering a smile, "I love it! It's..." she bit her lip to contain herself, "_gorgeous_, Derek." He stood up; hurt written all over his face. "Derek--"

"No, it's okay. I understand." Sighing, he shut the little black box and went back over to his dresser, throwing it in as he shut it closed. "Okay, s--"

"Derek!" she put her hands on either side of him, begging him to look at her and he did, reluctantly, "What are you doing?! I loved it! I promise I loved it!"

"No," he shook his head pathetically, "You hated it. You wanted something better. Not your old ring. Ugh! I'm so stupid!" Casey frowned. "Sorry."

"Derek, I promise I loved it." She tried again to assure him, "I'll love anything you give me no matt--"

"Just stop…" he sighed with much disappointment, "It's not good enough…" Casey was starting to feel horrible. "You expected something better. Something like this…" there he held in between his thumb and index finger, was that ring.

"Der--" Her eyes darted open in shock with what was in front of her; this ring that she had seen before; this ring that she fell in love with. "De-Derek, this is the…the…" she stammered. He managed a slight laugh at her daze for the ring he'd gotten for her. Casey wasted no time in punching his shoulder with force. "You are such an asshole, you know that?"

"Oh, Casey," he slapped his thigh in laughter, "Your face! Priceless, I tell you!" She glowered angrily at him to which he quickly settled his laughter. "Ye-yeah," he cleared his throat and brought on the serious, "I got it that day. I got it for you that day because I knew you loved it. I wanted to give it to you, you know, as a 'real' engagement ring...then everything that happened…" his face fell at the thought. "But I kept it. I kept it because I still had hope, Casey."

Casey couldn't help but smile at him and she just couldn't believe it. This guy had moved to New York for her. Gotten an apartment for them to share _and_ left everything behind in Toronto…for her. Now in front of her was this ring. This ring that she saw at the store that day and come to find out, he had gotten it for her. And he'd had it all along. During the fights, during the divorce, during their time apart; he kept it. It really just confirmed how much he really loved her. And he really _did_ love her.

"Marry me, Case." He looked directly at her as the anger subsided and the tears fell. "A real engagement. A real wedding. A real marriage. Marry me. Again."

"Yes, I'll marry you again." Casey nodded along and let the tears fall softly from her eyes. He didn't wait another second to put that really gorgeous engagement ring on her finger and man did it fit perfectly. Wrapping an arm around her waist; the other gently cupping the side of her face, Derek pulled her in for a re-engagement kiss. Pulling back Casey stifled a laugh, "I promise I'll be better than your first wife..."

- - - -

_There they sat on their flight back to Toronto; Casey sitting to the left of him as he stared at the TV on the front headrest. It was an awkward vacation for them both. He was married. He was accidentally married to the snoring girl to his side. And not only that, he had gotten intimate with his wife. Now the two of them were flying home to seek that annulment Casey mentioned. Then their marriage would be dissolved. An annulment they really needed.  
_

_He rolled his eyes as Casey's head fell upon his shoulder. His initial reaction was to nudge it off much like she did on their way to Vegas but for some odd reason he didn't. Staring ahead with the occasional glances at the vanilla smelling brunette on his shoulder, he reached into his pocket carefully to prevent waking up the girl. Taking out that cheap metal he called a wedding ring, Derek gently put it on his finger and stared. For a second there, he kind of liked the look but would be immediately shaken out of it as he felt a warm wetness on his shoulder. His face scrunched up in a ball of disgust as he quickly stripped that ring off his finger and hid it back into his pocket. Still realizing he was letting his drooling wife rest on him, he shook his head pathetically as certain thought crossed his mind. A certain thought that pertained to his drooling accidental wife. A certain thought that pertained to him actually being _with_ his drooling accidental wife. "Oh, Venturi," he sighed, putting his head back on his seat, "what the hell is the matter with you..."_

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**I hope you guys enjoyed it. ****Thanks again! :)  
**


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